To Save a Peerage: Remastered
by dippytrippy122
Summary: Arriving in a world devastated by the sudden passing of Issei Hyoudou, Naruto, alongside a disenchanted Akeno, set out to bring her fellow peerage members back to life. All the while searching for the answers to the mysteries behind his sudden dimensional travel. He really should be used to the Uchiha screwing him over by now.
1. A Miracle

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto, or Highschool DxD, and sadly never will.

* * *

**Chapter 1 - A Miracle**

The war was over.

As those words echoed throughout the world, ninja and civilian alike celebrated the end of Madara Uchiha and the self-proclaimed Goddess Kaguya.

The two heroes of the day lay next to one another, mirthless smiles upon each of their faces.

A trail of blood oozed from their lost appendages, scars littering their battered bodies in a cornucopia of war-driven madness.

"Ne, teme."

A light grunt was his response. "What is it, dobe?"

The blonde grinned slightly. "I'm glad you're finally back."

The Uchiha scoffed.

"Don't get all sentimental on me, now. You're still an idiot."

The jinchuriki merely grinned wider at the attitude of his biologically unrelated brother.

"Awwww, you know you love me." He coughed lightly. "You're such a tsundere you know that?"

Sasuke sighed in exasperation. Only Naruto could bring him this much annoyance in a single sentence.

"Shut up dobe."

The fond smirk that found its way on his face was a testament to his true feelings, however.

The two continued to lay there as their minds wandered to places unknown. It was a miracle that they were still conscious all things considered.

Their battle, while appearing a draw, had been a definite victory for the blonde ninja.

His attempts to bring his best friend back from the brink of insanity finally bore fruit.

Naruto smiled. It was a rather simple expression in practice, but it spoke volumes about his character. A man who was able to get back up after being kicked down countless times.

If it wasn't for the fact that he was essentially a God by this point, then most would probably attribute his determination to be the only reason he was still alive.

He certainly wouldn't fault them for that logic.

"Hey, dobe?"

Naruto craned his head over slightly. "Yeah, teme?"

The Uchiha went quiet. "Thanks for not giving up on me."

Typically, the Uzumaki would have made some snide comment and ruined the moment, but he knew how much it took for his friend to admit his weakness.

So, he decided against it.

"You're welcome Sasuke. I'd do it again if I have to."

A quiet 'tch' sounded out from the crevice as the two fell into companionable silence.

"So, we should probably seal these wounds shut, shouldn't we?"

Naruto nodded silently at the question before closing his eyes and bracing for the pain. Sasuke looked at his friend before going through a few one-handed seals and using a simple fire jutsu to carefully cauterize the wound shut.

Naruto very much did not enjoy that.

Looking at his friend Sasuke turned over slightly and gave Naruto a better angle to do the same thing for him. Creating a Bunshin, the boy started doing hand seals, the clone doing the same thing as one another to make up for their lack of knowledge with one handed jutsu.

Sasuke bit his tongue, hard, as his wounds were forced shut. Naruto simply did not have the same control he had over fire leading to an even more painful experience. Still, it had to be done, and the boy was thankful.

Satisfied that there was no more risk to their lives, Naruto decided to test his luck with walking.

He slowly rose to his feet and, while clutching the adjacent wall to support himself, began to walk towards his downed friend slowly.

Sasuke looked up and smirked lightly at the offered arm. The moment he touched his friend's hand however he suddenly fell back to the ground on his knees.

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

For the stoic individual to scream with such reckless abandon, Naruto knew something very wrong must have happened.

Rushing to his side he began assessing his friends' injuries.

Finding nothing which would indicate this much pain he spoke in a commanding tone.

"Sasuke, where is the pain coming from?"

The Uchiha began taking gulps of air, greedily attempting to fill his lungs and pacify the excruciating pain before gingerly pointing to his eyes.

His right one specifically.

"Your eye? Okay, let me see it."

While he was far from being a medical ninja, Naruto had learned a good deal from Sakura and her mentor.

He found the lessons exceedingly boring, but he at least managed to gain a decent level of knowledge about identifying injuries. He had even become somewhat of a professional when it came to removing infected appendages and sewing shut wounds.

He was rather surprised when he stopped to think about it. No one saw his proficiency in this field coming. He sure the hell didn't.

Though, on the other hand, his actual abilities in Medical Ninjutsu were shoddy at best. He had barely managed to learn the Mystical Palm Technique and could not use it to heal anything beyond a simple cut or bruise. He attributed this to his subpar chakra control.

Still, this thought process wasn't what his friend needed right now.

Slowly lowering himself to his knees, he held the back of Sasuke's head in a feeble attempt to lessen the strain.

"Dobe... believe me, I _really_ don't want to ask this, but I don't think we have any other options. Help won't arrive fast enough, and I need this eye out now. It hurts, so damn bad. There's… there's something wrong with it. I just don't know what _that _actually is."

Naruto grit his teeth.

"NO! Sasuke I can't just take out your eye. Are you insane?" He shook his head. "There has to be another way."

The boy laughed lightly before convulsing violently on the floor.

Recovering from the momentary lapse, Sasuke shook his head bitterly. "Believe me, if there were another way, I would have suggested it by now. I have no idea what's going on with this thing, but I _do _know that this needs to be dealt with; and fast." He paused to gulp more air. "It wouldn't surprise me if that bastard Madara had something to do with this. But, at this point I guess it doesn't really matter."

Kaguya's descendant looked down in sadness. He did not want to mutilate his friend's broken body that much more.

"At least I have another one, eh dobe?" he joked.

The blonde didn't find it particularly funny.

"Ne... Naruto."

That snapped him to attention. The Uchiha using his name meant that he was serious.

"You remember how Kakashi's Sharingan was given to him?"

How could he forget? Obito was at the center of all the problems that had led to the Fourth and hopefully final Great Ninja War.

But why bring that up now?

...

Wait-

"Sasuke, you can't be serious," Naruto stated incredulously. "I don't even know if my body would accept the Sharingan. Plus, what if it just does to me what it's doing to you? Isn't there anything else we can do!?"

The Uchiha, who was obviously on his last legs just shook his head solemnly.

"Look it needs to come out one way or another and I'd rather you have it than anyone else." He shouted before grunting. "This... is painful, Naruto. Very painful." He was breathing heavily and was deathly pale. "I'm not asking you to put it in your own head right away but I'm probably going to go into shock soon, and I'd rather not die like this. So, do this for me, okay?"

Staring into the eyes of his friend, one black and the other a mixture of red and black, Naruto nodded slowly before unsealing a medical kit medical kit from a small scroll on his person.

Approaching his friend, he spoke. "I'm not gonna lie teme, even though I will numb the pain around your eye this is still gonna hurt like a bitch." He grinned weakly. "But you better not scream, or I won't let you hear the end of it."

The Uchiha smirked at the jab. "Just get it over with."

Naruto acquiesced, and soon he had begun the very delicate procedure of removing the eye from his friend's socket. Unfortunately given how heavily injured the black-haired teen was, he could not just knock him out like what would be considered standard practice for an operation such as this.

He simply could not risk his friend sustaining further injuries mentally and elsewhere.

Gritting his teeth in pain, the prideful teen refused to show weakness in front of his self-proclaimed rival. Though he had to admit the time it had taken before it was finally over could not even begin to be described as torture.

Sighing in relief, Naruto wiped his brow before looking at the eye he extracted from his friends' head.

He really should wait until a medical team came looking for them, but he knew that the eye had to be removed immediately before unforeseen complications happened. Sealing the held appendage into a small storage scroll he placed it into the pocket of his ruined coat.

Helping Sasuke to the edge of the cave he leaned his friend against the wall to recover. It was then that he noticed his friends' remaining eye shifting colors. What was once pitch-black was now red with 3 tomeo's circling the center.

'_The Sharingan…?' _Naruto questioned internally. He knew that his friend was in possession of a far more deadly bloodline until just a few minutes ago. What happened to it?

"Ne, what is it dobe…?" The tired Uchiha questioned.

As Naruto opened his mouth to answer he noticed that the color normal again. Was his mind just playing tricks on him?

He was probably just tired.

"It's nothing, teme. Just try to stay awake until I get help, alright?"

"Tch, whatever."

Smiling at his friends' reservations the Jinchuriki headed outside. Sitting down on a nearby rock he sent out a beacon with the remainder of his chakra.

Grunting in exertion he continued his actions until he was physically unable.

It was nearly an hour later that he heard the tell-tale sounds of a medical team approaching. Naruto smiled and fell backwards, completely spent.

'_Kami… I need a vacation.'_

***A few months later***

High-ranking missions were at an all-time low due to a severe lack of missing-nin. The worlds need for combat-trained ninja was lower than ever. Trade-routes were being opened constantly, with stock and trade booming at an all-time high. Unification was finally a reality for the nations.

It was… nice.

Naruto smiled as he looked down at his newly affixed arm.

"Thanks, obaa-chan."

The cells felt like his own and brought him back to the power level he had gained during the war.

It was almost annoying that Sasuke, the only one who could ever give him a challenge, was nowhere to be found. Not to mention, still lacked an arm.

Finding his way into his apartment he laid back on his bed and relaxed. Thoughts flittered through his mind as he stared up at the ceiling.

"I did it ero-sennin. I brought peace to this world."

A tear rolled down his cheek at his admission. Everything his teacher had ever dreamed of had finally been realized and he was the biggest instigator for it.

So then why, he pondered, did he feel so unfulfilled.

Looking over at the small scroll atop his nightstand he considered it for a while.

He had been biding his time, waiting months for a specific opportunity to arise for where he would require Sasuke's gift.

Nothing had, however.

In fact, given the state of the world at present he began to doubt that such an event, where he would require more power, would _ever _arrive.

What should he do?

Initially he considered donating the Sharingan to the council, maybe it could be replicated for future generations.

Then he adamantly decided against it.

It was simply not right to give his friends gift up to those who would abuse it, so he kept it secret. If Sasuke were here right now he knew the asshole would have berated him for his lack of drive to go through with it.

"Oi! Performing ocular surgery on myself isn't exactly pleasant, teme." he yelled out to no one.

Naruto grumbled to himself as he realized his nerves must have getting to him. Unsealing the eye, he began looking it over. The whole thing was creepy, in a way. He was essentially staring at a piece of his friends' body. There was _something else _though. It was almost as if an imaginary pull was trying to force his hand. It _should _have struck him as odd.

Though for some unknown reason, in this point in time, he did not consider the rather obvious implications.

Rubbing the back of his head he came to a decision and sighed.

This was not going to be fun.

* * *

He was right. It was most certainly anything but fun.

After painstakingly removing his eye with the precision expected of someone with experience in the medical field, Naruto had gone through even more pain when he began to re-attach the other eye into his now vacant socket.

Thankfully he still had anesthesia left over from his recovery process meaning that it wasn't entirely unbearable.

Turning to the two clones which had completed the procedure he nodded at them prompting them to dissipate.

Resisting the urge to hurl he tightly shut his eyes as waves of pain washed over him.

He knew it wouldn't be pleasant but even with the painkillers it was truly excruciating.

Panting with exertion, he blinked lightly and opened his newly replaced right eye and blanched at what he saw.

"The Mangekyou..."

Why was the Sharingan in its evolved state already?

He winced as his eye began to bleed lightly from the unintentional exertion.

"GAHHHHHHH!"

A scream tore through his throat as he fell to his knees in spasms.

_'The hell? Is it this stupid eye again?'_

He began clawing at the ground as he started contemplating what he should do.

On that note, why did he suddenly think it was such a good idea to implant it anyway?

If it had been causing problems before why would it suddenly be safe now?

It was almost as if his actions had been controlled somehow... but how, when?

Who?

A flash of dark-colored eyes appeared in his mind.

He swore. "Fuck-!"

Looking ahead of him, he tried but to no avail, to stop the portal his Kamui was unwillingly opening. Examining it with a cursory glance, he noted that it was far more purple than any he had seen previous. Though, he wasn't quite sure why.

As if just realizing his situation, Naruto quickly dove towards an adjacent wall and attempted to stick to it using his chakra.

Unfortunately, the portal continued expanding, specifically aiming to pull him into it.

"What the hell is going on?"

He was so confused but more than that he was scared.

_'Someone must have gotten into the teme's head back then and affected his Sharingan somehow.'_

But who, and _why?_

He gnashed his teeth as he attempted once more to close his right eye.

It simply would not budge.

Eventually the walls around him began to show signs of cracking. The technique was growing rapidly, and it was starting to take the environment with it. By this point, entering the portal was the only way to stop its expansion.

He growled.

"Damnit."

Before the blonde shinobi jumped in. The voices from some of his friends echoing behind him.

Naruto Uzumaki was no more.

* * *

A group of eight teenagers idled around a dimly lit room with nary a word between them.

A beautiful redhead sat behind the desk at the front, eyes of a dead fish on display to everyone around her. She looked disheveled and had the appearance of someone who had not slept in days. The slight red tint adorning her cheeks and telltale signs of tear marks were the only things that implied she could show emotion.

"Buchou, we should probably prepare for the summit..."

The voice came from beside her and trailed off softly. It belonged to a teenager whose indescribable beauty was only matched by her peer right next to her. Black hair was tied up in a long ponytail which cascaded down her back. She was wearing a kimono which failed to hide her impossible figure.

"Hm."

Akeno looked down sadly at her president's nonchalant dismissal of her request. It has been a trying time for everyone, but Rias took it harder than anyone else. She just wished there was something she could do.

She looked away before the tears started gathering in her eyes again. She refused to let her sadness be shown in front of the others. It had been her weakness, amongst others, which led to the tragedy happening after all.

Looking around the room, the half-devil bit her lip as she took in the expressions of everyone else.

No one was unaffected.

Kiba was radiating anger, the likes of which she had only seen when the Holy Sword incident happened. He was always sharpening his swords as a means of distracting himself from the reality of the situation. It had become a tick of sorts, a habit that he had become unable to break. It was evident to her, one of the only ones who kept a mostly clear head about things, that he was pushing himself too far.

Stealing a glance over at the swordswoman next to Kiba she grimaced slightly at Xenovia's identical expression. Those two had been doing nothing but constant sparring for days on end now. In fact, she had only seen them take a break when the president told them to. Even then Akeno practically had to force her superior to do anything otherwise her friends would more than likely push themselves to death.

Taking a wary glance over to the two people who _appeared_ the least affected she breathed sharply.

Rossweisse did not know... _him_ long enough to be hurt by it, she reasoned. While she did seem upset, she had yet to join the pity party that the rest of them had become so accustomed to.

She was glad for that.

Koneko, on the other hand, made Akeno's bottom lip quiver slightly. The Nekomata had a constant frown on her face. The expression in itself wasn't necessarily telling of anything wrong. However, the fact that her normally stoic look hadn't manifested itself in weeks, alongside her complete loss of appetite towards anything sweet spoke volumes of how torn up about the situation she really was.

They had finally become close to one another, only to be forcibly ripped apart. It was too cruel.

The same could be said for Gasper as well. The poor boy was just coming to terms with his powers, much in the same way that Koneko had and his source of strength was taken from him. It was far too soon. No one else seemed to be able to knock the kid out of the self-inflicted funk that he had caused for himself. He considered himself a lost cause, and everyone else was far too lost in their own problems to help him. Some family they were.

As she turned to look at the final member of the peerage, she found it no longer possible to hold back her tears. If there was anyone affected more by his death than the president, it would have to have been Asia. The sweet and timid girl was now terrified of her own shadow. Everywhere she went, she constantly looked paranoid about one thing or another. No matter who asks or when, she would immediately clamp up and look down at her knees in self-deprecation.

Akeno could relate to that.

She sat down in a chair by herself. She needed to reflect; again.

Truthfully, she knew how much of a linchpin he was to the group. He kept them all together, and without him, things were starting to fall apart.

No, that's not quite right.

She covered her face with her hands as tears streamed down uninterrupted.

The group had _already_ fallen apart.

Taking a spare tissue from a nearby tissue box, she blew her nose softly.

It had only been two weeks, but everything changed since then.

Akeno grimaced as vibrant images unwittingly popped into her mind.

It was so… sudden. Almost anti-climactic in a way. He had faced down far tougher opponents; Countless exorcists and Fallen Angels, Riser Phoenix, hell even Vali the White Dragon Emperor, and had always found a way to come out on top. He almost felt invincible to them. Someone who refused to give up.

He. Would. Win.

So, when the jaws of Fenrir tore into him, as if he was a mere _insect _to him; no one was prepared. There was nothing else to say. His life was forfeit the moment he entered the fray.

It was over.

Rias, holding his chewed up body in her arms had lost control immediately after. It was equal parts mesmerizing and terrifying, watching her disseminate both Loki and Fenrir until there was nothing left. She completely overpowered them. There was nothing anyone could do.

After she was done, she walked back over to his body and began weeping over her supposed failure. No one said anything as they all attempted to come to terms with his passing in their own ways.

The three who had the phoenix tears used on them took it extra hard. The feelings going through all of them was that the tears were wasted on them. They would never have taken it if it meant saving their friend from death.

It was far too late for such sentiments now, however.

Upon their return from Hell, Rias had locked herself in her room and missed three days of school. It was the first time that ever happened. When she finally came back, she looked malnourished and refused to speak to anyone for the rest of the week. By the following week, she had begun talking to her subordinates again but only long enough for her to give out orders before she went to the back room to begin crying again.

It was a sad sight.

It didn't end there, however. There were more reports than ever about Fallen Angels attacking the area, and Azazel was nowhere to be found. Of all the faction leaders he surprisingly took it the hardest. More than likely due to him being the self-appointed head of the Occult Research Club.

Even Akeno felt sorry for the man, regardless of his race.

The fact that he had gone MIA inadvertently caused stress for the club who now had to take care of the strays all on their own. Rias was ruthless. Akeno had never seen the princess act in such a suicidal manner. Throwing caution to the wind the red-haired devil would often be seen diving into fights head-on without her usual flair or strategic planning. It was as if everything that made Rias Gremory her own person had been lost amongst the fighting.

Koneko consistently stood at the back of all conflicts. The poor girl was once more afraid of her lineage and the baggage that came with it. Both Gasper and Asia could be found with her; expressions wild. One afraid of everything around them and the other afraid of himself. Everyone saw these things happen, but no one helped them.

It was pathetic.

Xenovia and Kiba had both taken to scouting out and murdering every stray Fallen Angel or Devil that they came across. Their dedication was an obvious distraction, and there was the occasional night or two where they never ended up coming home. They did not arrive at school the following day.

Still, no one seemed to care.

Of everyone in the group, only Akeno and Rossweisse were able to think rationally on the battlefield, the latter the only one able to do so outside of it as well. The two continued to provide the tactical support the team needed in case the frontal assault failed. Thankfully it hadn't gotten to that point yet, but Akeno had little to no doubt that eventually it would. It was only a matter of time.

The depressing atmosphere within the clubhouse was suffocating her. Out of everyone in the room, they were the only two prepared for the impromptu summit set to begin in the school shortly. It was late in the day, nearing the evening in fact, so there would not be anyone in the building.

The summit was a front, and they all knew that. The topic was going to inevitably be about the death of the teenager who had helped to bridge the factions together. It was not a subject that any of them had any intention of participating in, but they knew they had little choice in the matter.

Finding something to mend a potentially broken relationship wasn't easy. _He_ had done that. _He_ was someone that everyone enjoyed and, whether intentional or not, _he_ brought out the best in them all.

On another note, it wasn't hard to imagine that they also wished to talk about the sacred gear that the young teen had possessed. Ddraig, the red dragon. He was a power far greater than most people could ever dream of and he vanished the moment his partner's heart stopped beating.

No one had any idea where he went.

Theories were ranging from the artifact being broken by some means or, more than likely, that the item had been passed onto its next wielder.

This mystery was a major cause for concern, however, as no one had any clue who its wielder would be. Furthermore, nothing of note had shown up on the factions' radar to imply any unknown variables being added into the equation. So, there was no doubt in her mind that this meeting would focus heavily on the possible implications of someone unsavory getting their hands on it.

In all honesty, however; Akeno simply didn't care anymore. She just wanted things to go back to the way they were.

Of all her friends she knew she had to keep the strongest front. She was just as torn up as any of them. Like Koneko, she was just starting to become closer to the boy in a genuine way and then he was taken from her. However, unlike everyone else, he had not yet touched her life in a major way. She was certain he would have if he'd been given the chance, but he hadn't. It was almost a crueler fate, she thought, to have all her friends be so impacted by someone she never got to experience.

Some people would consider it a blessing, but Akeno considered it a curse. True, it helped her keep a clearer head, but the disappointment weighed on her mind. Right before he disappeared from their lives, the beautiful girl had intended to tell him the full truth about her heritage.

Maybe even go on a date with him?

She would never know these things. It was best not to dwell on them.

Smiling sadly to herself, she began looking briefly at her group of broken friends once more.

Taking in their vacant, or overly too expressive faces she made a decision.

Putting her hands together she began praying. She knew there was no God anymore, and hell even when there was one, devils were still forbidden from praying to him.

Truthfully, she did not know why she was doing this, but as the last person of her group of friends that still had her sanity intact, she decided it was a bit of a final gambit. If this did not work, then she wasn't sure if they were ever going to break out of this spell.

They were all at their wit's end here.

Ignoring the flashes of pain that shot through her head from her rebellious actions she spoke quietly. It was only for her and whoever was out there listening.

Perhaps Michael would take pity on them? She doubted it, but she was willing to try anything.

"Please God… just this once." She paused to rub her head before speaking once more. "Give us a miracle to save us. This one time."

She waited a moment.

Then another.

Nothing happened.

Well, she hadn't expected anything to. That was too convenient, and she had learned long ago that nothing positive comes into her life without strings attached. Maybe they had not reached a low point yet, and this was just Heaven's way of testing their spirits?

She chuckled mirthlessly. If they had not yet reached their low point, then she wasn't sure that she wanted to see what that entailed.

Deciding that she had to once again be the leader she stood up. While she did not wish to force them into such a potentially damaging meeting, she had no choice. Akeno opened her mouth to speak.

That's when the world shook.

The group was sent to the floor in a sudden heap, the trances that had overcome them all being lifted for the moment.

Getting off the ground, Akeno looked outside and saw that the tell-tale signs of an explosion had occurred on the sports field just outside the club house.

For some reason, she felt drawn to it.

Not questioning things, she began to walk towards the door slowly. Soon her pace accelerated, and she bolted out of the room.

The rest of her fellow club members looked to one another for a moment before nodding and rushing after her.

Akeno was the first to reach the crater. Even if she had not had the head start that she did, her speed was hard to track. She could not remember the last time that she was this interested in something.

Peering into the large hole, she surmised that something had been thrown at supersonic speeds and smashed into the ground. There was no reason to believe that the rupture had anything to do with a bomb or the like as there was no shrapnel in the area and the force was concentrated. The result was loud, and it caused damage to the vicinity of the field, yes, but the hole itself was quite small in diameter.

As the smoke cleared, she stood shocked as the object she had been hypothesizing about revealed itself. A blonde-haired male with a thin chain vest shirt and orange pants lied at the bottom of the crater unmoving. The young man looked to be in terrible shape. There were deep lacerations all over his body, some of which were merely scars and others looked like recently opened wounds. His right eye had a gash running across it and one of his arms was entirely bandaged.

What happened to him…?

She decided to walk up to him and put her hand to his chest already expecting the worst. Her eyes widened.

There was a heartbeat.

It was faint, but there was undeniably a heartbeat. This guy was still alive.

How was that possible? He did not have any noticeable energy coming from him, and he appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary human.

It was at this point that her friends finally arrived at the scene and as predicted, half of them became sick at the sight of the body while the others merely narrowed their eyes at the heavily bloodied teenager.

Akeno quickly turned towards the president. "Buchou, he's still alive."

Everyone was stunned. How the hell could someone this injured still be alive?

"That's not possible Akeno... he's just a human."

The black-haired girl narrowed her eyes. "It doesn't matter what he is; we can save him."

The red-haired devil appeared apathetic. "Oh? And how do you suppose we do that?"

"You have a piece, don't you?" the half-devil challenged. "Revive him with your last Rook!"

Akeno knew that her master had planned on eventually using that piece to reincarnate Rossweisse, but this was far more important.

"No."

The queen had blanched at the sudden dismissal before she began bristling lightly.

"No? What do you mean no?" she questioned. "This is an innocent life we're talking about here. Why won't you do it?"

"Innocent?" Rias scoffed. "What makes you say that? You have no proof to back up your claim."

Akeno could not respond to her statement. Rias was right. She had nothing concrete to support the statement that the boy was, in fact, innocent but…

She just knew that he was.

"Akeno, there is no reason for me to endanger our lives for your fantasies about getting down with some cute boy that you don't even know."

The lightning maiden's breath stopped in that instance. "What... did you just say...?"

Rias raised an eyebrow, a monotonous look adorning her face. "Hm? We both know your flirty attitude. It really wouldn't surprise me if you wanted him back so that you could hit on him."

It was hard to tell if the girl in front of her was talking about their dead companion or the one that lay unconscious at her feet.

Either way, however, her words stung. Bad.

Continuing, unaffected by her Queen's silence, the King peered over the edge to stare closely at the near-comatose teenager for a moment.

She turned around.

"He's simply not worth it, Akeno. He isn't 'him,' so there is no point."

That did it.

Akeno walked up to Rias and, in front of everyone, slapped her with as much force as she could muster.

Silence permeated the area as the demon princess looked at her servant in shock.

"What was that for-?"

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR...?" She started incredulously. "DO YOU EVEN HEAR YOURSELF ANYMORE RIAS!?"

The princess took a step back as her best friend reprimanded her.

"JUST BECAUSE HE IS NOT ISSEI DOES NOT MAKE HIM ANY LESS VALUABLE."

Akeno ordinarily would have winced upon mentioning his name, but she refused to back down. She knew it would take a whole hell of a lot more than a slap to bring her friend back from the brink of despair, but it was a start.

"Furthermore, where do you get off by calling me some floozy flirt." She narrowed her eyes in anger. "I only flirted with Issei in the ways that I did because I liked him. Don't get that shit twisted with me."

Rias looked down for a moment. Whether it was in shame or something else entirely was unclear.

However, Akeno was not finished.

"And finally, _Buchou_." She spat her title. "You know as well as I do that someone who got injured to the point where they look like that," she motioned towards the mangled mess, "and still survived must be someone worth our time. They have to be a figure of interest at the very least."

Everyone was tense as the two 'great ladies' of Kuoh High stared one another down. Finally, Rias relented and pulled her final Evil Piece out of her pocket.

With great reluctance, she placed the Rook on his chest and began to speak softly, the chant emanating throughout the area.

The effect was immediate.

A bright light filled the area as the piece entered his chest signifying the birth of a new devil.

...

Or that's what they thought would happen anyway.

Suddenly, the blonde's eyes opened wide as he was forced awake. The combination of his wounds alongside the Evil Piece flooding his body with unimaginable pain.

Everyone covered their ears as the boy began screaming in pain.

"What the hell is going on?" Akeno yelled, the only one who seemed to worry about the boy's safety.

No one had an answer for her. She decided to approach the bloodied human, braving the heavy winds and lights that had suddenly erupted around him determined to try and bring some solace to his pain.

She was the one who inadvertently caused it after all.

Crouching down to his level, Akeno began speaking slowly into his ear. "Hey, hey it's okay. Everything is going to be alright."

She frowned as he looked to be trying to calm himself down. It was not working, and it wasn't hard to tell that he was only doing so for her benefit.

Gripping his hand tightly, she began squeezing it as a means of reassuring him that she was there. It was the best she could do.

His screams had not lessened in the slightest.

They needed help.

"Everyone get out of the way! I've got to fix this quickly."

Thankfully, ask and you shall receive.

Akeno looked up and was shocked to see the devil factions' leader himself, step out of a transportation circle. Running over to the pit Sirzechs kneeled by the boys' side. Materializing some runes from the air, he began placing them on the teenager's body in a circular formation.

"What are you doing, Sirzechs-sama?"

He looked too deep in concentration to answer and so Akeno dropped the issue.

Soon enough he yelled some unknown command as the runes lit up brilliantly before turning to dust and crumbling around them.

That's when something ejected from his chest.

"The Rook?"

He nodded and grabbed the floating chess piece.

Turning towards the captive audience, he threw the piece to his confused sister and began explaining. "For one reason or another, this boy's body was rejecting the powers of the evil piece, and so I had to forcibly extract it from him before either one of them was destroyed."

Akeno looked shaken by the news. She had forced Rias' hand into doing this and caused the barely conscious boy unspeakable pain.

She was the worst.

Her thoughts of self-replication were cut off suddenly, however, as Rias got up from the ground and began dusting her dress off.

"I'm sorry we couldn't save him Akeno..."

The apology was short and contrite but was far more than the Queen had seen of her King in weeks.

Without any more words, the devil princess walked off to prepare for the upcoming summit. Her subordinates, while conflicted and unsure about leaving the injured boy behind, began following her lead.

Soon Akeno, Sirzechs, and the mysterious teenager were the only ones left in the area.

Looking at the sight before him, the devil factions' leader could not help the sigh that escaped his lips.

"She is becoming more and more volatile. No, more than that. She has regressed to a state of being far colder than anything I ever thought possible for her." He paused, a weary look on his face. "It is disconcerting, to say the least."

His sister's Queen said nothing as she tried to formulate her thoughts.

"Ano, Sirzechs-sama?"

He turned to her with a small smile.

"Yes, Akeno-chan?"

She looked down at the boy she was continuing to hold.

"Why did his body reject that piece...? And how did you know to come here so suddenly?"

He grinned at the Queen's curiosity.

"Well, in answer to your second question; I was already in the area for the summit and decided to rush over when I heard the explosion." He revealed. "As for your other question... to be honest, I think that the piece was simply inadequate as a means of containing his potential."

Akeno cocked her head to the side in confusion, requesting elaboration. "What do you mean?"

Sirzechs put a hand to his chin. "Well, truthfully that boy is not normal. " He paused momentarily, trying to come up with further reasoning. "I'm not sure what it is exactly, but there is something about him that makes me feel like he's far more than meets the eye." He stopped and shrugged. "Could also be that his strength far exceeds all of you; combined. At least, in theory."

Akeno blanched.

A human far exceeded her entire Peerage's strength? Was that even possible?

Sirzechs suddenly began pouting. "The most important thing here though is that my dear Ria-tan didn't even seem to notice or care about seeing me!" Tears were now pouring down his cheeks in droves. "Oh, woe is me..."

Akeno sighed at his antics. "Okay then, say I accept that." She led. "Why him? What is it about him that makes you so sure he is this strong?"

The Maou put a hand to his chin and tapped it, thinking to himself.

"Well, truthfully he just, sort of... appeared."

She blinked. "Appeared?"

Sirzechs nodded. "Yes. He came out of nowhere with little to no warning. Honestly, I know nothing about him except that our scanners picked him up all at once. Kind of a mystery that one."

Akeno blanched at that. "He came from out of nowhere? Isn't that impossible?"

He grinned. "It should be impossible, shouldn't it."

She had no clue what he was alluding to.

"That's not the only thing though." He began. "Our radars seemed unable to pick up anything power-wise about him. It's almost as if he is simply not here."

"But how?" Akeno questioned. "Isn't that impossible? I thought those things are supposed to be super accurate."

"They are," he relented. "Even humans have a small power level, especially one as physically fit as he appears to be. Which makes me all the warier of him."

Sirzechs stopped to level her with a look of utmost seriousness. "After all, the scanners are set to pick up any power reading up to the degree of a Faction Leader."

Akeno was stunned. "You... you mean he might be as powerful as you...?"

He nodded. "It's entirely possible. In fact, I am willing to bet that at full strength he could potentially be at an even higher point."

Akeno couldn't believe it. If that's true then-!

"Or the machine could be broken. That's a possibility too."

She face-faulted.

Groaning at the incredible stupidity of the man in front of her Akeno could not hide her annoyance.

"Sirzechs-sama..."

Gulping at the openly hostile girl in front of him, he began to back up slightly.

"Ah… Akeno-chan, it was just a joke. I wouldn't have come here if I didn't believe him to be someone worth saving."

The girl nodded slowly in acceptance of his words just before her eyes suddenly widened.

"Wait! He's still heavily injured! What if he dies from blood loss!? Or he could go into shock! Any number of things could happen! We've gotta quickly get help for him or else-!"

"Hey, hey it's ok Akeno-chan. Just take a deep breath. There is nothing to worry about."

He placed his hands on her shoulders and waited for her to calm down before asking if he could explain himself. She nodded.

"Do you mind listening to his heartbeat again for me?"

She tilted her head to the side in confusion. "What for?"

He smiled lightly. "Humor me."

Puzzled, she did as she was asked.

Wait.

"His heartbeat is far stronger than it was just a few minutes ago. I expected it to be weaker after that incident with the evil piece just now."

The Devil faction's leader just shook his head. "No, I figured this was the case. It appears our little friend here has some form of regenerative abilities." He put his hand on his chin. "I'm unsure if he can heal himself completely with that, but at the very least he should most likely regain consciousness again within the next couple days."

That was surprising.

"Aside from that, I also had another reason for coming here this evening." He began, smiling fondly at her. "You already seemed so taken with him, and I couldn't just let someone so important to my sister be unhappy if I could do something about it."

Akeno smiled lightly at the thought, but it faded fast. Sirzechs quickly guessed the reasoning for this and did not push.

His sister was not the same girl she was before her pawn's death.

"I'm glad that you want to get to know the boy though. I feel like he is a miracle waiting to happen, honestly." Sirzechs stated, expertly shifting the tone of the conversation. "Of anyone I know, you have all needed a miracle for a while now and I genuinely think he is it."

Akeno was stunned. A miracle…? Was it possible?

But when she looked at the face of the sleeping teenager, she felt connected in a way that she did not think possible. For someone, she had never met, especially a guy, it was surprising to her.

Akeno had always been a guarded individual; double that when around the opposite gender. While she may have appeared like a flirt to the world, she held what she considered to be impossibly high standards that no man could ever fill even in terms of friendship.

So why was this man catching her eye to such an extent?

"Also, as I alluded to earlier," He began. "Even though he has those regenerative abilities, he'll still need to be taken care of properly. Bandaged, have his wounds cleaned and given a place to stay for the next little while until we figure out what to do with him."

He stopped to consider his options. "Ordinarily, I would have suggested Rias due to her abilities, but I guess I could get Grayfia-chan to-"

"I'll do it!"

Sirzechs blinked at her sudden statement making her blush immediately upon realization.

Seriously, what the hell was up with her right now?

"Uh... I mean, I'd hate to impose upon you or Grayfia-sama. I'll just take him back to my shrine and bandage him up there. I know I don't have the same powers that Rias has, but I know for a fact that I can do just fine."

The devil stared at the girl for a few seconds before smirking.

"Oh? Has little Akeno-chan gotten a crush on the new guy?" He grinned. "Well it's a little hard to tell underneath all the blood and gunk, but he does seem to be pretty attractive. I certainly don't blame you for it."

"No, I don't." she refuted immediately. "I'm just curious about him, that's all."

"Sureeeeeeeeee."

Akeno pouted at the Satan's teasing before picking up the body, gingerly holding it close to her frame. He was lighter than expected.

"Ah. One more thing." Sirzechs started. "Please do not tell anyone else about this alright? To be honest, I was hesitant to even give you this information, but I trust you. So, do this for me alright? We don't need an incident sparking between the three factions over this boy."

The shrine maiden nodded at the request. While she was still not entirely convinced that this boy was as powerful as he was implying, she knew not to go against a request from her factions' leader.

Sirzechs smiled at the girl before waving.

"Now I better get going before Grayfia-chan kills me for being late to the meeting. I'll inform Ria-tan that you won't be in attendance."

Akeno smiled, appreciatively. "Thank you Sirzechs-sama."

He grinned. "No worries. Just make sure that you two don't get up to anything I wouldn't do!"

And moment ruined.

She sighed as the Satan ran from the area to save himself from her ire.

Guess, they better get going then.

Sadly, teleportation was out of the question as he was not a devil, so she had no choice but to carry him to the shrine. Thankfully it was getting late into the evening now so she could just fly home. Walking did not seem like the best idea.

She snorted at the thought, as she flew over the town at breakneck speeds. The police would no doubt have had a few questions for her and the heavily injured boy in her arms.

Landing softly on the ground in front of her house, Akeno smiled lightly at the turn of events. The trip was simple and uneventful, which was a nice change of pace. She half-expected something to go wrong but was pleasantly surprised when nothing did.

Opening the door to her living quarters quietly, she looked at the blonde-haired male in her arms and decided to place him on a spare futon.

After grabbing some gauze, needle, and thread as well as some disinfectant from her bathroom's medical cabinet, she headed back out.

Approaching the body, she steeled herself and started pouring the disinfectant on the areas which appeared to be the most infected before dressing them the best she could.

The heavier wounds, namely a large gash which worked its way across his chest was stitched up by hand with a precision that Akeno impressed herself with.

While far from perfect, it was at least something and it ensured that the boy would make it through the night without further harm occurring.

The boy's clothes were destroyed in the rupture earlier, so she had no qualms about taking off what remained of his shirt and pants. She could not help the blush that lit up her face as she took in his incredible physique. He certainly wasn't hard on the eyes.

Shaking her head to rid herself of any impure thoughts, she began to strip before stopping at her panties. She figured that considering she did not know the boy, despite inherently trusting him, that she would leave them on just in case.

Curling up against the left side of his body, she draped his arm over her waist, feeling him unconsciously bring her closer.

Blushing once more at the close contact, she giggled at the boy in front of her.

Closing her eyes, she decided to use his arm as her pillow and began drifting off very quickly.

If she were honest, looking back at this moment, Akeno would not have been able to say why it was exactly that made her act the way that she did.

Though, as she was drifting off to sleep, a genuine smile was unknowingly placed on her face.

She doubted that her trust was ill-placed.

* * *

**A/N: **YES, it's back; and this time for good! :D For curiosity's sake I wonder how many people reading this, read it back when I initially uploaded it? To be honest guys, I have no excuse for never updating it and just taking it down when I disliked the quality of the writing. I did that to all my old fanfics; and have slowly been working on them in the background. This being one of them. I have around 50k words done by this point in time, and all the chapters I wrote previously have gone under _heavy _revision. Like the grammar, plot points and dialogue have all been changed to the point that I'm actually proud of this story lol. I'm loving writing it again too :). It's refreshing!

As for updates, the bigger the response, the sooner I'll get to writing and editing the next chapter:). (The original version of this story was only around 14k words long before I took it down lol), so I have quite a bit to do. But reviews especially make me write faster. Even if all you have is a criticism then that's fine :D (Just please don't critique me about the story getting uploaded again… I know I screwed up. I apologize for that guys.)

Finally thought I'd answer the questions that everyone wanted to know last time; just to put it out there.

**Question: **Will this be a harem?

**Answer: **Unless the story veers off course, probably not. I am always against being definitive with answers like this as the plot and characters go wherever they go, I just help get them there:P. If it does become a harem though; expect no more than 2-3 girls. Anymore becomes impossible to write imo.

**Question: **Will Issei come back?

**Answer: **NO! I came up with this story's concept with the idea that so many fanfics of harem-based plotlines in crossover sections add another protagonist while keeping the original in the same world. It causes conflicts of interest and ruins a lot of scenes. It doesn't work. So no, Issei will never be back.


	2. The Care of a Shrine Maiden

**Disclaimer: **Still don't own either property.

* * *

**Chapter 2 – The Care of a Shrine Maiden**

_A war-torn battlefield stretching on for miles. The dead vs the living in an endless struggle spanning every generation of shinobi._

_His friends, his enemies, people he hardly knew and people who he held close to his heart. They were all back._

_And he had to kill them again._

_It was a cruel fate that his longest memory of his father, was spent as a corpse. The Yellow Flash proved invaluable in the fighting, as to be expected, and all the Hokage's worked together to fight the never-ending armies and Gods that decided to show up at the last second._

_Seriously, how many masterminds can one organization have? Forget a skeleton in their closet; the Akatsuki had droves of the dead in there. Literally._

_First Pain, then Obito, then Madara and then Zetsu into Kaguya. It was jarring just trying to make sense of it all._

_Naruto stared at the bodies littered around him. The ones he lost for the first time, and those he had to put down for the second. It was terrible._

_As the silhouette of his best friend made way for light, the sounds of lightning emanating from his body; Naruto accumulated the remains of his chakra._

_A Rasengan fully charged in his hand as he intercepted his friend._

_A pair of black eyes opened._

Naruto woke with a start. Sitting up suddenly, he began greedily taking in air to alleviate his panicked mind.

Closing his eyes, he attempted to refocus his memories, realigning himself with what had happened recently.

"That's right…" he reaffirmed, "I put Sasuke's Sharingan in my head and then…"

His left eye widened. The Sharingan!

Did he still have it? He couldn't tell if he did or not. All he knew was that for the moment his right eye was simply refusing to open properly.

Gripping his head as a sudden pain shot through it, he began a self-diagnosis.

_'I feel like I got socked by Baa-chan. What the hell happened to me…?'_

He just couldn't remember. Why did he put that stupid thing in his head anyway? It was as if something in his head was _blocking _him from thinking on it too hard. As if questioning the obvious wasn't allowed. What the hell was going on-?

"Gh-!"

His headache was worsening, and the more he tried to force his mind on the subject at hand, the worse it got. Eventually, he gave in.

Closing his eyes, Naruto laid back down on the mattress below him. If he couldn't do anything about it, then he may as well recover the best he can.

…

…

That's when it hit him.

Where exactly was he?

And for that matter.

"AHHHHHH!" Who was that!?

Naruto quickly backed away from the naked girl in his futon, stuttering as he did so.

"Wha-what the hell happened?"

Did they, do it? He sure the hell hoped not. He may have been, rather _unfortunately, _been given a crash course on sexually illicit-related activities from his late sensei, but that did not mean that he had any form of experience on the matter.

Furthermore, he had no clue who this girl was and screwing random people was not something Naruto was particularly interested in.

"Should I wake her?"

He was kind of surprised that she did not immediately arise from her sleep when he screamed just now; but perhaps he should be thankful for that? After all, she could have been some Kunoichi who was tasked with slitting his throat after sleeping with him.

But no, that did not seem right.

After all, he was patched up, meaning that she had been taking care of him. He seriously doubted that an enemy shinobi would have taken the time and supplies to heal someone they just planned on killing right afterward.

Maybe she was a thief? After all the necklace he had in his possession was worth unimaginable amounts of money. Or so he was told.

Looking down at the palm of his hand, he flooded some chakra into it, a few separate spirals showing up as a result.

Okay, so his necklace and his basic ninja equipment were still sealed away and hadn't been forced open. That was good news. Unfortunately, his actual sealing scrolls did not appear to be anywhere near him, but he seriously doubted someone would go so far for some basic supplies.

That rules out her being a thief or common bandit then.

So then, who is she?

A slight moan from the mattress jolted him from his thoughts as the girl in question left dreamland. Getting up from her position on the floor she sat up entirely topless, evidently not at all embarrassed by her state of dress.

Her eyes began to search for the body that should have been accompanying her; before they widened upon seeing her charge fully up and about.

"How are you awake…?" she breathed. "Your condition was beyond critical last night."

Naruto blinked at the question before rubbing the back of his hair sheepishly.

"Ah well, I heal pretty quickly! Plus, you seem to have done a great job of patching me up. So yeah!" He grinned. "Thank you for that."

His grin transformed into a beaming smile which reddened her cheeks slightly.

"Ara, you're welcome but…" she suddenly looked concerned. "I wasn't lying when I said your condition was horrific. It was to the point where I was certain that it would take a few days for you to be brought back. Especially after the failed revival…"

The boy cocked his head to the side. "Revival?"

"Not just that," she continued, dodging the question, "but a good amount of the injuries have completely faded. That's just not possible."

Ah.

He had been wondering that too and hoped that maybe she had an answer for it. Flexing his right hand, he began looking over his body for anything that seemed out of the ordinary.

He could _feel _the phantom pains, so he understood he was previously injured, possibly grievously so. Still, this healing seemed… accelerated, somehow. His Uzumaki blood was strong, but to this extent? Unlikely. Could it have been Kurama then? Or was it something else? Any number of things could have attributed to his sudden rejuvenated body. Speaking of which, why the hell hadn't the fox said anything yet? And why couldn't he sense any chakra from this girl? He could sense _something _from her, but it definitely wasn't chakra.

Maybe she wasn't a Kunoichi after all.

In fact, the air, in general, was suspiciously lacking in his world's signature energy source.

It was strange. Why could he not sense chakra anywhere in the area?

There were far too many questions, and he wasn't sure if he was going to receive any answers to them for a while.

"Ara, you alright?"

The boy looked back at his companion and nodded with a smile on his face.

Then he quickly turned away. Evidently, he had been too distracted to remember her state of undress.

"Why haven't you covered yourself up yet?" He yelled in exasperation. "For that matter, why were we naked anyway? Me, I understand since I was being patched up, but there was no reason for you to strip!"

He waited a few seconds for an answer before he felt a body. A very _naked_ body drape itself across his back.

"Oh? Are you telling me you don't like what you see?" Akeno breathed into his ear. "I doubt that's true, I can tell."

Naruto's blush was so extreme he figured he could have given Hinata a run for her money at that moment. Following her eyesight which had shamelessly found its way down to his very excited member, he suddenly lost his ability to breathe.

"I… uh…"

He couldn't speak. He was at her mercy.

Dammit, Ero-sennin you were supposed to give lessons on things like this! Avoiding seduction was something all shinobi were meant to be experienced with. Though in retrospect, his sensei was usually the one being seduced so he guessed those kinds of lessons would not have really worked out.

A giggle ended his thought process.

Naruto turned around to look at the girl who finally decided to cover her modesty with her blanket. His eye began twitching.

"Was that really necessary…?"

She just grinned at him. "No, but it was fun."

He hung his head in resignation. This girl was going to be trouble, he could tell.

"But in answer to your question, I did it to try and give you more body heat. You were very cold, and it looked to be the right thing to do at the time."

Her logic was... off, to be sure, but he could not detect any ill intentions coming from her or her words. So, he decided that for now, he would accept them.

Moving forward with this understanding, Naruto turned back to look at the girl next him. It was if a spell had been broken and he could finally take in her physical features. He gasped.

"She's beautiful…"

It was true. There were plenty of gorgeous Kunoichi out there, but he has only seen a handful of girls in his life that came even _close_ to the way this girl looked. He was surprised he hadn't noticed just how physically attractive she was until this exact moment.

Sakura would certainly have had a vendetta against this girl due to her incredible… 'development' in the chest department.

Not that he was looking, mind you.

"What did you say…?"

Shit. He said that out loud didn't he.

"I'm sorry! Please don't hit me; I won't do it again I swear!"

He put his head down and placed his hands in a manner that looked like he was begging. While the action would have most likely been seen as a joke to others, Akeno could tell he was being genuine.

She looked at the boy in front of her and frowned. Was he really this insecure that he was convinced complimenting her would result in getting hit? What kind of girls was this guy acquainted with?

Smiling sadly at the blonde in front of her, Akeno spoke with care in her voice. "I'm not going to hit you, silly. Any self-respecting girl would never hit someone who gave them such an endearing compliment." Her expression brightened. "Especially not someone as cute as you."

Okay, it was official. Naruto was a tomato.

Coughing into his hand to try and regain some semblance of dignity, he turned back towards her with a serious expression on his face. He had to get as much information as he could out of her, while he could.

"Thank you for not hitting me, I appreciate it." He chuckled awkwardly. "But uh, I was wondering if you would not mind answering a couple questions that I had for you?"

She nodded. "I also have some for you. You may start if you'd like."

It was sort of surreal that he was just accepting the fact that he had been in bed naked with another girl he was not acquainted with. Maybe he suffered some form of long-lasting concussion alongside his apparent injuries. The concept was not outside the realm of possibility.

On another note, it was probably best to only worry about getting answers to the things he knew would yield results. He'll go over everything else later.

"So… who are you exactly?"

Tact. Naruto Uzumaki was not someone who had a lot of it.

The shrine maiden giggled at the crudely structured question.

"My name is Akeno Himejima. I am a 3rd-year student at Kuoh Academy." She smiled at him. "What's yours?"

Naruto gave his signature grin. "I am Naruto Uzumaki. Future Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village, dattebayo!"

Akeno looked confused. "Fire shadow…? Hidden Leaf Village…?" Her expression turned even more unsure. "Dattebayo?"

He hung his head at the last one. "It's a verbal tick, don't judge me."

She just giggled again.

"Wait." He started slowly, "You don't know what the Hokage is? Or even what Konoha is either?"

She shook her head slowly, puzzled. "No, should I? I thought you were just giving me some sort of Otaku-like introduction."

Now Naruto was the one who was confused.

Confused and worried.

"What's an Otaku…? No more importantly, do you really not know what the words I mentioned earlier mean?"

She frowned. It wasn't hard to pick up his anxiety. This was obviously a young man that wore his heart on his sleeve.

"No, I'm sorry Uzumaki-san I don't know either of those words."

She squeezed his shoulder gently. "Why don't you try and see what you can remember?"

He nodded slowly at her request and closed his eyes.

The Sharingan was placed in his head…

He fell to the ground in pain…

A pair of dark, black-like eyes stared into him…

After that…

…

"That's right! Kamui!"

Akeno looked at him in confusion. "Kamui? What's that?"

It was at this point that Naruto realized his conversational partner may genuinely not know anything about being a Shinobi.

That left one very terrifying possibility.

"Ano, Himejima-san?"

She motioned for him to continue.

"Where exactly are we?"

She smiled at the innocent question. "We're in my house on the outskirts of Kuoh Town, Japan."

That settles it.

He was no longer in the Elemental Nations.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as a means of calming himself down. Even in a situation like this, it was best to act like a Shinobi and not give anything away.

"Alright, thank you Himejima-san," Naruto spoke, bowing his head slightly as he did so. "I uh don't really have any money or anything to repay you for taking me in but if there is anything, I can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask."

She giggled at him as he stumbled over his words. She had not met a boy this cute since…

She shook her head quickly. Best not to let her emotions get the better of her in front of her guest.

"Don't worry about it Uzumaki-san. It was my pleasure." She paused. "Though, do you think you could tell me what led to putting you in such a state?"

Naruto looked conflicted. It was clear to him that this girl he was conversing with was not normal. She was not asking the obvious questions one would ask him at a time like this and didn't even follow-up on topics such as his sudden changes of conversation.

While she did appear to have his well-being in mind, he probably should do his best not to give anything about himself away. He had no clue what she was and knew she probably wouldn't tell him even if he had asked.

She certainly wasn't a mere civilian, that much he could conclude. Her strange energy signature assured him of that.

"Ah I'm sorry, I honestly can't remember." He began tapping the side of his head as if trying to jog his memory. "Maybe I was attacked? I can't seem to recall anything of note. Hmm…"

Akeno frowned at him. "Do you think you have some form of amnesia?"

Amnesia, huh. A state where a human temporarily forgets a certain portion of their memories for an indeterminate amount of time.

Convenient. He could roll with that.

"It seems possible..." Naruto crossed his arms. "I'm just not sure what could have caused me to forget something like that."

Akeno poked him in the nose. "Well, you were hurt pretty bad. Any normal person would have died, you know? You should be more careful!"

The ninja nodded at her claim, eye narrowing imperceptibly as he did so. Her words gave a lot away and told him that she knew he was not normal. She was not as clueless as he had originally hoped for.

Sensing a form of apprehension from her guest, Akeno decided to continue speaking. "Well, until you're able to recall the events that lead to your condition, you may stay with me if you'd like."

Naruto was shocked at her generosity, alongside her apparent lack of push on the matter. "Are you sure, Himejima-san?" He looked away. "I don't wish to be a bother."

She shook her head with a smile. "It's no bother Uzumaki-san. I patched you up and took care of you, so there's no way that I would just leave you on your own after doing that."

That, and she was far too interested in the boy to just simply let him go out like that.

Naruto accepted the answer. She seemed genuine in her offer, and he was not going to turn away kindness like that.

Deciding that the suspicion had averted for the moment, Akeno got up and stretched. Grinning with a teasing smirk on her face, she covered her chest with her arm, making sure to push them together enticingly. "Well, as much fun as it would be to just sit around naked all day, it probably wouldn't be good decorum to do that outside, would it?"

He blinked at that. Was this girl implying that, even in his presence, she would have preferred to remain as she was?

That did not surprise him as much as it probably should have.

"Yeah that's true, I guess." He paused before sheepishly rubbing the back of his head again. "But I don't have any other clothes."

She smiled at him. "Don't worry, Uzumaki-san. I have a spare male school uniform you can wear!"

Her smile turned devious as she said that. It wasn't difficult for her to tell that education was not his strong suit.

He paled.

"… Di-did you say school uniform?"

Akeno smiled brightly.

"Yep! You get to come to school with me today!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

"I hate you."

"Ara ara, sure you do Uzumaki-san."

Akeno had a very triumphant grin on her face as she led her unwilling companion through the streets to the school grounds ahead.

"Remind me to kill this 'Kiba-kun' for even giving you a spare uniform. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have had to go in today."

She turned towards the blonde who was cursing up a storm and cocked her head to the side.

"Oh, is that what you think? I was planning on making you wear one of mine if you didn't use his."

He stopped moving and looked at the girl with a terrified expression on his face.

"…You wouldn't dare."

She smiled brightly. "Well now we don't need to worry about that anymore, do we?"

"… Did I tell you that I hate you, yet?"

"I think you might have mentioned it."

Naruto hung his head as he continued walking along the path toward the school building. While he was somewhat enjoying the banter with the rather eccentric girl who patched him up, he could not help but let his thoughts wander.

_'I still know next to nothing about this world. Not only that but where the hell is Kurama? It's really worrying me that he has yet to contact me and I can't seem to get through to him either.'_

He furrowed his brows. _'It's almost as if something is blocking the connection somehow, just like earlier. But what the hell could be doing that-?'_

"Uzumaki-san? Are you alright over there?"

He gasped and fell backward to avoid running into the girl who decided to stop right in front of his face.

"Gah! The hell are you doing just stopping like that!?"

She looked at him concerned. "I was just wondering what was wrong. You spaced out, silly."

Oh.

_'It's fine, just play it cool Naruto.'_ he gulped.

"Sorry, Himejima-san I was just, uh, busy!"

"Busy?" She blinked. "With what?"

Come on Naruto, think!

"Staring at you…?"

The awkward silence set in immediately.

_'… The hell was that, you idiot? I think even Ero-sennin would cringe at such a blunt remark.'_

Soon her cheeks became bright red.

Shit.

"Ahhhh gomen, gomen, I didn't mean to offend you again. I'm sorry!"

Coughing into her hand, she turned around to avoid his line of sight.

"It's fine Uzumaki-san that was actually kind of cute." She finished quietly, to where only he could hear. "I don't mind really."

Phew.

Breathing a sigh of relief at the result of his hastily thrown together explanation the shinobi immediately began thanking whatever deities were out there for helping him get out of the situation unscathed.

"But."

But…?

"I hope you're ready for some punishment later, you flirt." She began seductively. "Because compliments like that make me want to get back at you _extra hard."_

He blushed as she suddenly began leaning on him, much to the disapproval of everyone around them.

_'Damn talk about an unstable chick! Just choose a personality already and stick with it.'_

Untangling himself from her arms, he quickened his pace and tried his best to ignore the implications of what she had said.

Keyword being 'try.'

Smiling softly at the retreating boy, Akeno could not stop the giggle that escaped her lips.

Pulling out her cell-phone from her pocket she began speaking to someone, her smile growing wider as the conversation continued.

The caller I.D. read 'Sona Sitri'.

* * *

Before Naruto and Akeno arrived at their homeroom, the former had asked if he could go to the nurse's office to get a bandage for his eye. While she was initially curious for as to why it wasn't opening, she figured maybe he injured it and covering it would reduce strain.

Naruto thanked Kami once more that the girl hadn't pressed further.

The shinobi had hoped he would be able to just sit in the back of the class and hide his presence until the day was over.

Sadly, that was not meant to be.

"Hello, my name is Naruto Uzumaki" He stated exuberantly. "I love ramen, my friends, and training. I hate those who talk down to others, especially those who judge people for things they can't control. My dream… Well, it's a little personal." He bowed low before grinning to his peers, albeit in a way that was noticeably strained.

_'Why the hell did I have to give an introduction if I'm just a guest for the day!?'_

Well, he figured he may as well lay it on thick.

Naruto's grin cracked, leading way for his brightest possible smile. "I hope we can all get along!"

"KYAHHHHH KAWAIIIIIIIII!"

Naruto jumped back in surprise from the sudden outcry of female students and gulped at the few guys who began to growl openly at him.

What the hell did he do to cause such a reaction!?

"Thank you, that was very good Uzumaki-san. Now then, you may go sit by Himejima-san over there." The teacher instructed. "Though I thought someone else usually sat by her…" she trailed off.

Naruto sweat-dropped at that. "Yes sensei."

He had no doubts that his new companion had something to do with the fact that there was suddenly an open seat next to her.

Troublesome girls.

Taking a spot at his desk, he did his best to ignore the smile from his temporary 'land-lord' next to him. She was enjoying his misery a little too much for his liking.

"So…?" Akeno led. "How do you feel sitting next to the school's idol Uzumaki-san?"

He scoffed. "You're the school's idol?"

She grinned. "Yup! One of them anyway."

Naruto mumbled under his breath after that. Something about only being attractive on the outside.

He didn't get away with it.

"OUCH!"

"Uzumaki-san! Are you quite alright over there?"

The blonde shinobi pouted and rubbed his arm. He was not going to admit that he of all people got hurt from a simple pinch.

But why did it hurt so damn much!? It was almost like Sakura did it!

"No sensei, I apologize for the interruption."

Accepting his words with a smile, she continued with her lecture which Naruto had already tuned out.

He turned to look at the girl next to him with the biggest glare he could muster.

She just smiled back at him.

"The hell was that for!?" he hissed. "You nearly got me in trouble already!"

Akeno feigned ignorance. "Whatever are you talking about Uzumaki-san? I'm just the innocent Akeno Himejima, loved by everyone in the student body. Someone as beautiful _inside _as I am out!"

Her grin was anything but innocent.

"Don't tell me you disagree?"

…

"I really don't like you. You know that?"

She just shrugged. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Uzumaki-san." She paused as if in thought. "Well, aside from my naked body that is."

Naruto's head smashed through his desk from her remark.

He didn't think it was possible for him to feel any more embarrassed than he did right now.

"Uzumaki-san, please refrain from destroying school property or else you'll be issued a fine!"

Pointedly ignoring his companion's giggling, Naruto began crying into his hands at the unfairness of his situation.

This sucked.

* * *

As the lunch bell ring, both Akeno and Naruto left class side-by-side. This naturally caused quite the stir amongst the students in the area.

Though, after the seventeenth death threat or 'kawaii' thrown his way, Naruto wisely decided to tune them out.

"So Uzumaki-san, how are you enjoying this fine establishment?"

He snorted. "It's about as boring as I remember school being. Though it's been a while, so my memory might be a little off."

"Oh?" She cocked her head to the side. "You haven't attended school for a while? Why's that?"

Crap. Better think of an excuse.

"Well, I've actually been working since I was about thirteen years old." he lied smoothly. "Had to in the village I grew up in. There weren't many opportunities for someone like me."

He wasn't exactly sharing false information. He just wasn't telling the full truth, that's all.

Akeno looked at him with a concerned expression marring her face. "That young? What did you do?" She narrowed her eyes. "No, more importantly, what did you mean 'someone like me'?"

By this point in the time, the two had arrived on the roof of the building, and there did not appear to be anyone around. Naruto could tell she had chosen this area specifically to give the two of them some privacy for their discussion.

That did not mean he had any intention of giving out the information about him being a Jinchuriki who was orphaned at birth, however.

Taking his silence as something she shouldn't pry into, she changed tactics and began digging into her school bag, pulling out a bento as she did so.

"Here, Uzumaki-san."

He was surprised. "A bento? When did you have time to make this?"

Akeno pouted at him. "Ara ara, a girl hands you free food and you start to question her about it? You're a failure of a gentleman you know that."

Naruto quickly snatched the bento from her hands with a scowl on his face. Breaking apart the attached chopsticks he gave a quiet 'itadakimasu' before taking a bite of the food.

His expression was blank.

Akeno's expectant look quickly fell.

"Well…?" she began, worriedly. "How is it?"

Suddenly, he exploded from his spot and jumped in front of her face.

"I've never tasted something so good that it gave ramen a run for its money. You are truly a goddess." He bent down on his knees and began worshipping her. "Thank you for gracing me with your cooking prowess."

Her shocked expression broke quickly, making its way to giggling in a matter of moments. Then it became far more pronounced.

For the first time in weeks, Akeno laughed.

She couldn't stop it, and in all honesty at that moment, she simply did not care. Struggling to find a point in recent memory where she felt as at ease as she was with the strange boy in front of her, she quickly realized that she couldn't.

_'You really are an enigma, Uzumaki-san…'_

The blonde boy in question looked puzzled at her fond expression.

"Ne, Himejima-san, you okay?"

Akeno shook her head in affirmation. "Ah yes, Uzumaki-san I'm sorry. I had just zoned out for a while there."

"Ah, alright then." The shinobi relented. He suddenly looked apprehensive. "Um, Himejima-san? I was wondering…"

She smiled at his somewhat timid nature. It seemed he had minimal experience talking to the fairer sex. She found it endearing.

"Yes, Uzumaki-san?"

He paused. "Do you think that we could maybe not use Honorifics? Or at least not something as formal as that…? They were never really my strongest suit." Naruto started rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "That is if it's okay with you. I completely understand if it makes you uncomfortable-!"

"Sure, Uzumaki-kun. I personally prefer using more… personal ones among those I socialize with either."

The blonde shinobi blushed at the very direct choice from the girl in front of him and turned away with a cough.

Akeno just grinned.

* * *

The rest of their lunchtime went by peacefully. Naruto and Akeno had taken to small talk to pass the time. It was the first time, the shinobi noted, that he felt this at ease when talking to a girl.

Usually, by this point, they would have already beaten him to a pulp for one reason or another.

Akeno on the other hand just kept her serene smile in place, giggling whenever he said something that he was sure would raise her ire. He appreciated the change of pace.

Likewise, the shrine maiden was having an entertaining time. Even more so than Naruto, she was enjoying being in the presence of a guy that simply had no ulterior motive to him, other than spending time with her. It also helped that he was not intimidated by her physical appearance or forward personality.

Akeno knew that she unnerved him, or at least made him feel a little off kilter with her teasing but she attributed that mainly to a lack of experience. He was certainly unlike the boys that tried to talk to her simply to get into her pants. She was almost thankful that he did not know anyone else.

She did not want anyone taking him away from her yet. The more the two talked to one another, the less that she could accept him hanging out with someone else.

Akeno was half-devil/half-fallen-angel after all. Greed comes with the territory.

Taking a glance at her phone, she looked dismayed at the time displayed. They only had a few minutes to make it to class.

Looking at her companion with an apologetic look on her face, the message was conveyed quite clearly.

Naruto suddenly turned to jump off the roof in an attempt to escape this hell. Sadly, Akeno was faster and grabbed him by his waist, before dragging him across the floor by his legs.

Her grip was strong.

"Come on Uzumaki-kun! It's just another… Oh, three hours of classes?"

Naruto paused his unearthly wailing at that news. That didn't sound _too_ awful.

"Yeah, three hours of straight mathematics!" She gleamed. "Isn't that exciting!?"

His screams of despair sounded throughout the campus grounds.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

"You know, I'm really getting a sense of déjà vu here Uzumaki-kun," Akeno said nonchalantly. "I feel like you screamed that _exact_ same way this morning."

The shinobi who had a constant stream of fake tears running down his cheeks said nothing.

"No, no you're right." She said mockingly. "Your scream this morning was far less squeaky than that one."

He just continued sobbing.

Taking pity on the poor boy, Akeno patted him softly on the head. "Ne, it's okay now. The class is over, and we can go home now."

Home.

That was a sobering thought to be sure. Where exactly was home at this point?

He had successfully been derailed from further questions earlier when he had been forced to go to attend school for the day. The walk there was in a very public district which significantly limited opportunities for him to speak up about well, anything.

Class time was also a no-go. Divulging private information in front of Akeno's peers was not something he saw as being very wise.

Lunchtime was really the only time the two of them had to themselves, and even then, neither of them appeared to be willing to break the pleasant conversation they had started.

It was now nearing four o'clock, and it was truly the first time that he had to discuss anything with her.

Turning his head to speak up, he stopped short as he saw her talking to something in her hand.

It somewhat resembled, at least in function-wise, the walkie-talkies from back home. This led him to believe it was some form of communications device.

"Uzumaki-kun?"

The blonde shinobi looked at her. "Yeah?"

She imperceptibly shifted in place. "I have to go to a club meeting for a little while. Feel free to head back to my place okay? I'll be there when I finish up."

He nodded slowly, but a concerned expression soon lit up his face. "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you? You seem upset…"

The half-devil looked surprised at his assessment. Akeno had always considered herself an expert at hiding her emotions, so it was more than a little jarring that her 'classmate' had seen through her so easily. Was he some form of empath or sensor perhaps?

"No, thank you for your concern though Naruto-kun, I really appreciate it." She smiled at the boy, with a look that radiated her feelings. He noticed, however, that it did not quite reach her eyes.

"Alright…" he stated slowly. "Have fun."

She smiled. "I will."

Giving him a quick hug, which startled him due to how sudden it was, she walked away quickly.

He wanted to follow her, he really did, but he probably shouldn't push his luck. He did not want to offend the one person in this world who he was familiar with.

Deciding to heed her request he began to leave the school building and walk home.

…

…

Screw that. He couldn't just leave someone when they were as obviously distraught as the girl appeared to be.

Making a split-second decision, Naruto turned on his heels, noticing an orange-haired girl out of the corner of his eye. She was wearing a strange outfit with some sort of necklace in the shape of a capital T around her neck.

"Ne, I was wondering, do you know where Akeno Himejima's club is held?"

The girl looked at him suspiciously. "Why do you want to know that?" She narrowed her eyes.

_'Is he an enemy of the Gremory's? I can't sense anything from him…'_

Unaware that he was being sized up he just rubbed the back of his head in his trademark way.

"Ah, well I just had to go speak to her about something." He tried to think of something he could say to help his case. "She told me that she was headed off to her club, but forgot to tell me where it was."

The girl looked at him with severe doubt in her eyes; but she figured that the club could handle themselves if he did turn out to be someone to watch out for.

She pointed to a small gathering of trees. "There. The Occult Research Club holds their meetings in a building hidden behind the greenery over there."

Naruto cocked his head to the side. _'Occult Research Club…? The hell is that?'_

He quickly decided that wasn't important. Flashing her a Maito Gai-esque grin Naruto began running off in the direction she pointed in. "Thank you, pigtails-san! I owe you one!"

She bristled at the nickname, shocked at the audacity behind the stranger's words. Looking up at the sky for a second, Irina took a deep breath before sighing in a melancholic fashion.

He was far too energetic for her right now.

* * *

Naruto quickly found his way to the building, 'hidden in the leaves.' He snorted at the pun before pushing the door open.

All at once, various energy signatures assaulted his senses. They were all like Akeno's but notably different, both in feeling and in power level. Only one exceeded hers.

What exactly were the people of this club, anyway?

Narrowing his eyes and steeling his mind for any possible confrontation, he began to listen to the conversation taking place behind the main doors.

"… What the hell were you thinking, Akeno!? You don't know anything about him!"

"I-I know but…"

'Him?' Were they talking about who he thought they were?

"Then why? Explain yourself, Akeno!"

There was a pause.

"Because he's not what you think he is."

He could hear the incredulity in the response. "Not what I think? Akeno he should have been dead. I only heard from Sona after your request, and even then, I had to pry it out of her. Why were you trying to keep it a secret from us?"

Naruto could feel the conflicted emotions coming from his friend behind the door and had to bite down the urge to charge in right then. He had to wait for the right opportunity.

Thankfully, one presented itself very quickly.

After a few seconds of not responding to the decidedly rude girl's taunts, his instincts surrounding Akeno suddenly screamed at him.

Naruto was someone who always did what he felt was right, damn the consequences. This was no exception.

Kicking down the door instantaneously, he seemingly teleported to the other side of the room where a red-haired girl was about to slap his only friend in this world.

Grabbing the wrist before it made contact, he spoke with a steel that made everyone in the room shiver.

"Do not harm Akeno _ever_ again."

All eyes in the room went wide at the display of speed that they had just witnessed. They could hardly even follow it!

Naruto continued staring a hole into the redhead in front of him, not noticing he had used his friends' given name.

"Do I make myself clear?"

Rias wanted to yell at him. She wanted to reprimand him, much in the same way as she has been doing for the past two weeks now to anyone she could. But she knew, deep down, that she would have no chance in fighting the person in front of her.

She was scared. So, she nodded.

"Good." Naruto let go of her wrist. "Now then, mind telling me what you were going to hit my friend for?"

Akeno was stunned at the speed and ruthlessness she had just witnessed. It was making her feel warm all over her body that he would be so adamant in protecting her.

She really had lucked out in being the one to take him in.

Rias just let out a quiet 'tsk' before speaking. "I was going to slap her due to her taking care of you and not letting me know."

Naruto just narrowed his eyes. "And why would she need to let you know? Surely, she can do what she wants, right? It is her life after all," he challenged.

The girl in front of him looked confused. "Well yes. But I am her master so her not telling me something like this is equivalent to treason against my household."

Naruto was very confused. Master? Treason? What the hell was this crazy club and who was this messed up girl in front of him?

"Ano, Uzumaki-kun?"

He turned towards Akeno who suddenly looked very sunken into herself.

Naruto looked concernedly at his friend's crestfallen expression, motioning for her to explain.

"Um… well…" she bit her lip. "I want to explain to you what's going on with… everything, but…"

She found the words difficult. They weren't coming to her.

Taking things into his own hands, he smiled at her.

"We can talk later alright? We don't need to do this here."

She nodded, thankful for his interception before an amused smile broke out on her face as he started sizing up the others in the room who were all wary of him.

The blonde suddenly scampered over to someone who was minding their own business.

This should be interesting.

"Ne, do you want some Dango?"

The girl in front of him looked up at him with undisguised interest. She could never turn down sweets after all.

Everyone was bewildered as suddenly, a container of the delectable sweets appeared in his hands with a poof. Where the hell had he been keeping that!?

Opening the lid, he took one out and brought it up to her mouth.

"Say ahh!"

The girl blushed heavily at the requested action, but she still acquiesced.

A quiet "ah" later and Koneko was munching on one of the tasty treats.

He began patting her with a bright smile on his face. He just got the feeling that she had a major sweet tooth.

He handed her the rest of the box. "There, you enjoy those now!"

She nodded at him with a glazed over look on her face. The pastries plus the head petting, bringing a _very _red tint to her cheeks.

Proud that he made the day of his junior Naruto turned towards the next person in the room that had caught his interest.

He cocked his head to the side. "You know, you don't look like you belong here, somehow..."

Rossweisse just cried at the blunt statement causing Naruto to sweat-drop nervously.

"Ah, sorry that wasn't what I meant." He paused as if to formulate his thoughts. "I more meant that you seem more put-together than the rest of this sorry lot."

Everyone present widened their eyes at that. Except Rossweisse who continued sobbing.

Did he know about their situation somehow...?

Seeing that her expression was unchanged, he sighed and gave up on the crying girl. Walking towards the final person who had caught his attention, he smiled with thinly veiled annoyance at the attractive blonde in front of him.

"Ah. And you must be the famous Kiba-kun, hm?"

The blonde just blinked at the question before he was quickly subjugated to a noogie from hell.

"DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU DID TO ME!? HOW LONG I SUFFERED IN CLASS BECAUSE OF YOU!?"

Kiba was completely lost. Everyone else was staring at the scene with a dumbfounded expression on their face. Well, except for Akeno who was giggling and Rossweisse who had taken to sucking her thumb in the corner.

"WELL? DO YOU?"

"NO!" Kiba yelled out in pain. "I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"

The pain stopped instantly.

"Oh." Naruto shrugged. "Well, you could have told me you didn't do it on purpose."

Everyone except Akeno was stumped. What did the swordsman do to earn this strange teenager's ire?

Getting up from the couch which now contained a greatly frazzled bishounen, he approached Akeno and smiled.

"Want to go home now? I think you can take an early leave from the club tonight."

She looked unsure.

"Hey." Rias glared. "She can't leave this soon. We still need her for-!"

Suddenly, a creepy mask in the shape of Kurama's face appeared from behind his head.

Increasing his killing intent to the point where it was sure to make the girl submit, he began cackling.

"Hm? What was that Miss 'Master?'" He mocked. "You'll have to speak up if you want people actually to listen to what you have to say."

Rias gulped. It was taking all she had not to have an unwanted bowel movement.

"No-nothing… You may go home early today Akeno…"

Akeno was surprised at that but wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Taking Naruto's hand in her own, she quickly dragged him out of the room.

"Bye Neko-chan!"

Koneko was surprised when he called her that. Did he know what she was?

Though, he figured that even if he did, he couldn't be too bad.

After all, he did give her free food.

So, she waved back with a small indiscernible smile on her face.

No one followed her example.

* * *

The walk home had been rather subdued. Naruto knew his companion was deep in thought about what she wanted to say to him. He could tell it was difficult for her to come to terms with it.

Though, it became an issue when she continued to not speak even throughout their dinner.

He still waited, however. Patience was a discipline every shinobi needed to master, after all.

Even if it sucked beyond belief.

It was a little while later, that found the two in separate futons, located in the same room. It was his request. He wasn't comfortable with sharing a bed with a naked girl, but he also didn't wish to leave her side quite yet, so it was the next best thing.

He was sick of the silence.

"Ne, Himejima…" he coughed into his hand. "...-chan...?"

The half-devil jumped slightly at the sudden voice combined with the use of the personal honorific. She exhaled deeply.

"Yeah, Uzumaki-kun?"

There was quiet for a moment. "I just wanted to say something to you. You don't need to respond if you don't want to but…"

He paused. Words were hard sometimes.

"I just wanted to say that, no matter what you tell me… I will continue to care about you."

The girl gasped. She had not expected him to say that. Nor did she expect him to continue.

"We both know that we are far from normal. I think we both wanted to discuss it earlier today, but we just didn't find the opportunity to do so." She couldn't argue with that. "But, even so. Whatever you trust me with, I will promise right now not to ever judge you for it." He stopped and smiled softly. "Because that's my Ninja way!"

She turned over to face him, giggling. "Ninja way, huh? How very manly."

The hero of the Fourth Ninja War just pouted at the accusation. "Well, I thought it was pretty cool."

Looking over at her expression which was noticeably more relaxed than before, Naruto decided to press on.

"We can talk about it tomorrow though, alright? You mentioned at lunchtime that it was a Saturday, so we don't need to go to school. We can just talk at your own pace."

Akeno looked over at him, her expression softening considerably.

"You are truly special, Naruto." Her voice was quiet. "Thank you."

The usage of his first name made him smile as he lay back. It was late, and they both had a long day that had left them drained.

Just as she began to drift off, she heard him speak up again.

"I will make you laugh again, Akeno."

She no longer felt tired. Her eyelids snapped open again.

"What…?" she whispered.

His eyes were closed as he spoke.

He was facing the ceiling, and his arms were behind his head.

"Your laugh at lunch today. It was beautiful. I can tell that you don't use it very often anymore and I'm sure it has something to do with how off your friends seemed at the club."

He scratched his cheek. "To be honest, I just kinda approached those two because I felt like I could get through to them faster than the others. Neko-chan especially." he chuckled.

She couldn't speak.

He continued.

"I've been there before, ya know? Having everyone ridicule you no matter where you go. Your closest friends, spit in your face. Hell, I've had it worse in that regard." He laughed mirthlessly.

"But you keep going, and I want to be there to help you do that."

The ninja turned towards his only friend with a smile that set her heart aflutter.

"I will help you laugh again Akeno. I will do everything in my power to fix your friends hearts one, by one." He grinned. "And then, get ready to laugh again, Dattebayo!"

Silence again.

He coughed. "Just ignore that last part-"

Naruto was cut off as a body suddenly found its way into his chest, tears streaming down his torso as she held on for dear life.

Smiling sadly at her weeping form, Naruto wrapped his arms around her body gingerly, as the girl continued to let out all the pain and frustration that she had been feeling for the past two weeks.

He still wasn't sure why she, and all the others, were so upset, but here and now? He didn't care. All he wanted to do, right now, was give the girl the moral support she so desperately needed.

Eventually, her sobbing subsided, and she backed up from his chest enough to look him in the eyes with a level of gravity that floored him.

"Thank you, Uzu… no. Naruto-kun. You are the sweetest and most kind person that I know."

She lifted her head and gently placed a kiss on his forehead. His blush was bright, but he quickly fought it down. Now was not the time to be embarrassed.

The two continued to stare into each other's eyes for a while.

Then he yawned.

Giggling at her friend's penchant for ruining moments she swatted his chest playfully.

"Ara ara, Naruto-kun. You're gonna make me think that you don't like all the attention I'm giving you."

His response was to turn away with a pout. He was right; she was impossible.

Naruto began yawning again. "We should probably sleep now, Akeno. There's no sense in staying awake if we don't have to." He waved his hand. "As I said, we can worry about our 'confessions' tomorrow."

He sighed in content as he felt sleep begin to take him.

Then something very warm and soft curled up next to him.

Looking down at what caused his continued awareness, the form of Akeno met his vision.

"What are you doing…?" he asked sleepily.

She just wrapped her arms around his form tighter as if to say, 'what are you gonna do about it?'

Well, nothing. She knew that he wouldn't do anything but figured she owed him an explanation anyway.

"I… well I enjoyed sleeping with you last night. I felt safe, and I don't want to sleep alone." She looked down, in a rare moment of vulnerability. "Unless you don't want me here…"

He sighed and flicked her forehead. She pouted at him cutely.

"You can stay. But make sure that your shirt and your… unmentionables stay on."

Akeno accented to the request and held onto her new-found 'teddy bear' with extra gusto.

Naruto spoke quietly.

"Goodnight, Akeno."

She just held on tighter.

"Goodnight, Naruto-kun."

* * *

**A/N: **And the second chapter is back and about 1.5k longer than it was originally:p. Damn this is super long for me lol. Don't expect updates this soon xD I just had this mostly done and thought I'd give it. More reviews mean faster uploads though ;D. Thanks so much for the crazy support guys, I love you all 3


	3. All Because of a Cake

**Disclaimer: **Neither property is owned by me!

* * *

**Chapter 3 – All Because of a Cake**

"So, let me see if I've got this straight. You're a part of a devil's peerage which is essentially a servant-based system created for those in the upper class of the so-called Underworld."

A nod.

"There are three warring factions; the devils, the angels and the fallen angels, who are all lead by forces that are equivalent to Gods in power level."

Another nod.

"And all of this has somehow been happening without the knowledge of the civilian populace."

Once more, a nod.

"I see, I see. I can believe that."

Silence.

"ALONG WITH FLYING PIGS AND THE TOOTH FAIRY!"

Akeno pouted at her friend's blatant disregard for tact when dismissing her explanation.

"Why wouldn't you believe it, exactly!?" She yelled, agitated. "You already told me you're from some faraway village, practicing from childhood on how to be a ninja. That's as far-fetched as it gets!"

The devil looked at him pointedly. "Your explanation seems just as unbelievable to me, yet I trust what you're saying. Why can't you give me the benefit of a doubt?"

Naruto stuck his nose up. "I don't believe what I can't see."

Akeno's eyebrow twitched. She saw his smirk. He wasn't trying to hide it.

"I showed you my wings." She pointed out. "I can tell by your expression that you do believe me. You just won't admit it."

He shrugged his shoulders at her claim. "You're free to think whatever you want. I certainly won't stop you."

Looking over at her his trademark grin was in place.

He was having a great deal of fun messing with the currently flustered girl.

The two unlikely roommates had spent a part of the morning detailing their lives for the other to grasp. They were placing a great deal of trust in one another; a clear line of respect having been drawn up between the two of them.

There was a sense they both held about the other. There was an understanding in the other's words but also an unspoken agreement to not press further. Truthfully, they both had only scratched the surface onto each other's lives however there was no sense in pushing it.

Secrets were secret for a reason, after all.

Naruto had gleaned a great deal of knowledge about the world that he had found himself in from the devil beside him. While initially he held hope that somehow, he was still in his dimension, he found that very hard to believe by this point. There were striking similarities between this world and his, but far too many differences.

For example, the prominent language, at least in the area where he arrived in, _was _Japanese. However, it appeared to be a far more advanced dialect. There were various phrases and words, especially on the written front, that were alien to him. Perhaps that also alluded to why this world seemed so far ahead of his in terms of technology.

While the Elemental Nations had things such as televisions, trains and basic electricity, they seemed decidedly primitive when compared to the riches of this world. Additionally, many of the items, were far more common here, with things such as the 'TV' not only used for special events such as the Chunin Exams.

The crash course in modern-day Japan was given to him when he mentioned that he had lived in an area cut off from civilization. He gave her details about how his village looked but decided that he should not talk about anything outside of Konoha. He knew that the city where he was from was big enough as it was. If he started referencing an area as big as the Elemental Nations, that would just cause unwanted questions.

A village being hidden from the world at large was a far easier pill to swallow than an entire continent being so, after all.

He did not want to give away too much information too quickly, and he also did not want to appear suspicious. It was a nice, even middle-ground for him stand on. Or so he justified. He did, however, decide to tell her about the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. He figured it was best to do so now, before he used it and potentially freaked her out in the future.

Her expression to seeing it in action was picture-worthy in his mind.

Smiling at the shrine maiden, he flicked her nose in a way that signified he was joking around. "I'm sorry Akeno. You know I believe you. It _may _be hard to believe, but you don't strike me as a liar. Plus, I've heard stranger."

Some people claimed that Naruto trusted others too easily, considering it to be one of his greatest faults. However, in his mind, it was his greatest strength. Putting faith in other people, should never be a weakness.

Granted, there _was_ the occasional asshole who decided to back-stab him but that had only happened a few times in his life.

He was certain that the blushing girl in front of him was not going to be one of them.

Biting her bottom lip in annoyance, she gave him a glare that promised pain.

"Ara ara, Naruto-kun. Are you trying to mess with me?" She suddenly lunged at him faster than he could react. Pushing her large chest into his well-sculpted one, Akeno licked his ear lightly. "I vaguely remember us discussing a hard punishment that you were due for your actions yesterday. Do you not agree?"

He gulped. How the hell had she turned the tables on him so quickly!? Damn her overly sexualized mind.

And body.

"Akeno…?"

She breathed into his ear. "Yes… Na-ru-to-kun…?"

Each syllable was more accentuated than the last causing his blood to unwillingly leave the top half of his body, fast approaching its goal at the bottom.

He tried to shift out of her grip but found himself weak from the situation. She intentionally toppled on top of him, her head deep in his neck.

"Akeno…" he breathed. "Please… please stop."

"Oh? Now why would I do that?" she purred. "I don't think you really want me to stop, now do you?"

Naruto wanted to deny that. Everything was screaming at him to get away.

Well, aside from the problem, protruding from his underwear.

Dammit, why the hell is she naked again!? He could have sworn he watched her go to sleep in her clothing...

"Akeno, please… I know you're just messing with me." He gulped to stifle his breath. "I'm sorry, please stop."

_'Why the hell is she so scary but so… attractive all at once!?'_ Naruto wondered. _'I highly doubt many guys would be able to do this to someone of the opposite gender so this must be one of those 'girl things' Ero-sennin warned me about.'_

She looked highly amused at his pained reaction.

"Oh? Messing with you, am I?" Akeno paused to bite his earlobe sensually. "Well, that may be. But that doesn't mean I intend to take back my administrations…"

The moment she breathed into his ear he decided he had to get out of her grasp.

As painful as that task may be.

Akeno closed her eyes, about to go for his neck again when suddenly he was gone and, in his place-

"A log!?"

Naruto greedily began taking in air from the far corner of the room.

He pointed his finger dramatically at her.

"You're a crazy girl! You almost killed me just now, dattebayo!"

Akeno looked at him, stupefied for a moment. That is until she started smirking.

"Ara ara, you almost died? Was I that over-stimulating, Na-ru-to-kun…?"

His blush was a beacon in their bedroom. The morning light of the sun had nothing when compared to the light shining from the boy's face.

Scowling at the girl in front of him, he began muttering under his breath before stomping out of the room with a huff.

He was not going to be caught by her tricks again.

Akeno's grin made way for a small smile as he left.

"He really is fun to tease… I don't think I even teased Issei as much as I do Naruto-kun…"

She shook her head. Just because she finally said his name the other day, doesn't make it any easier in the long run.

It was an ongoing project that the self-proclaimed ninja was helping greatly with.

Stretching her arms, she sleepily got up off the floor and headed to the kitchen.

Might as well fix some breakfast before the day really gets started.

* * *

"OH, THANK KAMI! I BARELY ESCAPED WITH MY LIFE!"

Akeno snorted at his discomfort.

"Oh, quit being such a baby. It's done, and it really wasn't that big of a deal, now was it?"

"…" a pause. "I want my day back."

She grinned in a way that reminded him, uncomfortably so, of a Cheshire cat. "Too late!"

Akeno quickly lunged at him and gripped his arm against her bust with a broad smile on her face.

Naruto's blush was only accentuated as he took in the jealous and annoyed stares of those around him.

Why, oh why.

He began crying. "I had no idea that shopping was so horrible…"

The blonde ninja began shivering.

Akeno giggled at his expression. "Ne, Naruto-kun, if you keep talking like that, I'm gonna start to think that you never actually went shopping before."

His expression instantly darkened, and she noticed. While unsure as to what exactly she knew she triggered some negative memory in his mind. Tightening her grip on his arm she gave him a reassuring smile and continued walking, laying her head on his shoulder.

She wouldn't pressure him, no matter how much she wished she could know what was plaguing his mind.

The line of trust was drawn now, and she had no intention of crossing it.

Naruto and Akeno had been walking around the nearby mall for the past three hours and judging by the girl's expression she had no intention of slowing anytime soon.

_'We finally have my clothes after an eternity in this stupid place.'_ Naruto mentally ranted. _'She said that was the only thing we came here for so…' _His tears kept coming. _'why are we still here!?'_

Akeno pouted from her place on his shoulder.

"Ara, ara… you have a beautiful girl who is not only hanging off you but even paid for your new clothes." She stared up at him. "You should be grateful and not mopey."

Naruto stopped crying instantaneously before looking down at her adorable face. God, that expression hurt to look at.

Sighing in resignation he nodded.

"Yeah, you're right. Thank you, Akeno. You are going above and beyond for me, and I greatly appreciate it."

She smiled widely at his praise before nodding.

"You're welcome, Naruto-kun. It was my pleasure."

He looked away from her and began scratching his cheek awkwardly.

"Ah, and as for the money, I'll make sure to pay you back someday, alright?"

She had bought him multiple pairs of clothing after all. From underwear to school blazars, she made sure he had a decently varied wardrobe. Thankfully, she let him pick out his own unmentionables.

Not for a lack of trying, mind you. The girl could be pushy.

Akeno blinked at that, surprised by his admission. Unbeknownst to him, Sirzechs had dropped off a 'small' cheque as he called it, to help her cover some living expenses for her charge.

She had never seen so many 0's in her life.

Akeno quickly covered up her deadpanned expression.

"Ah, don't worry about that Naruto-kun. I was paid quite recently, so I happen to have a good deal of money to spare. I'll be fine."

Naruto nodded slowly.

While he was curious what job she had that would pay as handsomely as she implied, (especially given her rather sparse living conditions), he knew it best not to push girls for information.

Especially crazy ones like the one hanging off him currently.

"Alright. If you say so."

She nodded at him in agreement, before putting a finger to her chin as if deep in thought.

"Although…" she began, a sultry smirk finding its way back onto her face. "If you really want to pay me back, I can think of a few things you can do to cover the cost in another way."

Naruto gulped for air and began looking around for a conveniently placed distraction.

For once, Kami seemed to be on his side.

"Ah! Let's go in there for a second!"

Dragging the girl attached to him into the store, he smiled as he began looking around for something.

Akeno cocked her head to the side in confusion. _'A sweet store? What exactly is he looking for, here?'_

Naruto didn't strike her as someone who had a sweet tooth. Perhaps she was wrong though?

"Ah, here they are! Akeno, can you buy this for me?"

He held up a small cake and quickly dragged her towards the cash register.

"I smelled some cake residue on Neko-chan the other day; so, I figured I could buy her another one!"

Akeno's expression went blank.

"Wait this is for Koneko-?"

"Ma'am, is that all?"

The shrine maiden slowly craned her head towards the cashier who addressed her. The expression on her face caused the poor shop-worker to gulp at its murderous undertone.

"Yes." She said with an unassumingly sweet voice. "That is all."

Quickly ringing up the small cake with an inhumane speed to her actions she took the money from Akeno's hand and put it into the cash register.

"Thankyouhaveaniceday!"

Naruto grinned and waved at the young lady as he took the cake from his friend. It was clear to the cashier that the boy had said something that set off the girl accompanying him.

She wasn't sure what it was exactly, but she was sure of one thing.

The girl wasn't happy, and he had yet to notice.

"Poor bastard."

* * *

Naruto and Akeno walked away from the store with polar-opposite expressions on their faces.

The blonde ninja had a very self-satisfactory smile plastered onto his person while his companion looked to be blank-faced, lacking any noticeable emotion.

It was clear to everyone around them except the oblivious male in the duo.

_'What am I bothered about, anyway?'_ Akeno pondered. _'He's just being the nice guy like he always seems to be.'_

She sighed.

_'Well, whatever. It shouldn't matter. After all, it's not like he's going to just run into her out of nowhere or something-'_

"Ah, Neko-chan! Over here!"

"Oh, son of a-!"

The white-haired Nekomata in question looked up in surprise at the shout from behind her.

She turned around and slowly acknowledged the people behind her.

"Ah. Hello Akeno-senpai… Whiskers-senpai… how are you doing today?"

Naruto pouted at the nickname before smiling brightly and taking out the small cake from the shopping bag.

Handing the treat to her, he began petting her head.

"Here! I remembered how much you adored pastries from the other day and figured you would like this too. So… enjoy!"

Koneko was surprised. Other than Rias, no one else had ever really purchased food for her. At least, anyone that she knew personally. Her fan club could be vicious.

Shivers.

Yet, here he was. Someone who seemed to do it just for the sake of doing it and making her feel good.

It was… nice.

"Thank you…" Koneko gave a very faint smile. "I really appreciate this, Whiskers-senpai."

Naruto smiled back before coughing into his hand.

"Naruto."

Koneko cocked her head to the side.

"What?"

The ninja scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki, not whiskers."

Koneko looked at him with more intensity.

"But… you call me Neko… so why can't I call you whiskers…?"

He couldn't argue with that logic.

Hanging his head in resignation, he began crying as she started to pat his head as a means of comforting the strange teenager.

Akeno had finally had enough.

"Na-ru-to-kunnn…?"

The sugary sweet tone instantly put him on edge. Rightfully so.

"Ah…" He gulped. "Yeah, Akeno?"

She smiled brightly. It was off.

"I'm sure that Koneko-chan here, doesn't want to talk right now. She's busy, and we should let her be on her way."

Koneko cocked her head to the side.

"No… I was just coming into town to buy some cake… but I guess I don't need to do that anymore, thanks to whiskers-senpai…"

Naruto grinned. A job well done, so he thought.

Koneko blankly stared at him, with a small spark of gratitude behind her eyes.

"So, I don't have anything left to do today."

Akeno did not like this turn of events.

Not one bit.

"Well, be that as it may…" she tried to interject, "I think that we should go right Naruto-?"

"Ne, Neko-chan, do you happen to know Senjutsu?"

That was unexpected.

Both girls stared at him, mouth agape and eyes wide open.

"Wha-… what did you just say, Naruto-kun…?"

Akeno tried her best to form words, but the broken question was the only thing she could realistically achieve.

Koneko couldn't even speak.

Naruto furrowed his brows slightly.

"I asked if she knew Senjutsu. It feels decidedly different than mine, but at the same time, her aura is so similar." He grinned. "I'm right, aren't I? You have Senjutsu abilities too, don't you?"

Their baffled expressions just grew at that.

His eyebrow rose.

"What-?"

"YOU KNOW SENJUTSU!?"

"GAH!"

Naruto fell backward at the collective outburst of both girls, surprised by the fact that Koneko had joined in on it.

Rubbing his backside in annoyance, he stood up and glowered at them.

"Oi! What the hell was that for!?"

They just continued to look at him in awe.

Sighing, he began taking in the audience around them and decided that there must be a reason that Senjutsu would elicit such a reaction to the devils in front of him.

He looked at them with a spark of seriousness in his eyes, and a prankster's smile on his lips.

"Hold on."

Placing his hands on their respective shoulders, he took in a deep breath and focused his chakra around the three of them. Smoke filtered throughout the area.

Then, they were gone.

* * *

The trees surrounding the area did a good job of masking their entrance as the trio dropped down into the clearing.

Naruto looked over at the two girls who collapsed to the ground heaving, a grin on his face.

"Ah, yeah that's my bad. The first time is always rough. You'll get used to it soon, though!"

Akeno looked up at him with a murderous glare while Koneko just stared at him blankly.

He saw the spark of annoyance, however.

Gulping at their expressions, he put his hands up in surrender.

"Maa, maa, I just thought I'd bring us here so we wouldn't have this discussion in public. I figured that there was a reason you two reacted the way you did. So…"

He trailed off and stared at the two of them, with an expectant glance.

"Care to explain why the term Senjutsu set you off so bad?"

The other night, Naruto had decided to send a group of clones to map out the larger area around him. While he knew the basics from Akeno, he still wanted to a better understanding of this world for himself.

He found this small forest during that search and learned that it was quite secluded from the busiest areas of Japan. To that end, this site seemed perfect for this discussion.

The two devils looked at each other unsurely, before Koneko spoke softly, her head down.

"My sister and I are the only ones left in our race. We have the unique ability of Senjutsu but…"

The younger girl looked lost.

"When she used it, she lost control and killed her old master. I…" She trailed off. "I haven't been able to harness it properly since…"

She bit her lip.

This was it. It was going to end the same way it always does. Whenever people hear that she is related to a murderer, they either pity her or just leave her-

"It'll be fine Koneko-chan, I promise. I can say that, because I've been there. So, I understand."

The Nekomata looked up and was brought face to face with the blonde teenager in front of him.

He looked so, pure, so caring...

So completely understanding.

Naruto smiled and began to pet her head softly.

"Truthfully, my best friend, a guy that I would consider my brother in everything but blood, has committed almost every atrocity in the book." He chuckled lightly. "I mean hell; he almost killed

me. I think you both saw the results of that from my numerous scars. The older-looking ones were from him."

The two girls looked at him in complete shock.

"Your best friend did that to you?" Akeno asked in disbelief. "How can you even consider someone like that a friend? Let alone, your _best_ friend?"

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, a big reason for that, is probably because I never had anyone growing up. He was just as alone as I was. It started off as a rivalry of sorts, but, over time, it's grown into a friendship I would literally fight armies to keep."

The shinobi smirked before getting back up off the ground and moved away from the two awestruck girls he was entirely oblivious to.

Sitting in a cross-legged position, he began to meditate and harness the natural energy in the area.

It felt different. Slightly more chaotic than what he was used to, but certainly nothing he couldn't handle.

Akeno was staring at her companion in muted shock. She was surprised he revealed something so personal out of the blue like that but was even more shocked to find out it was, in a way, linked to his near-comatose state.

To think that he would go so far for someone that he considered a friend. Even when he was backstabbed, quite literally, by the one he cared about the most.

She frowned as she absorbed something he glossed over.

'He definitely said he was alone, right…?' As she observed the blonde-haired teenager in front of her, she could not believe that he had once led a life of solitude.

Yet, she could still unwillingly see it.

Koneko, on the other hand, was currently trying to sort out her thoughts.

He was just like her, or at least to an extent.

She wanted to get to know him more. He was intriguing. She had no intention of becoming close to anyone, but the need for contact with another person was strong within her.

It had been so long.

Since-

"Alright! I'm done!"

Naruto suddenly appeared between the two zoned out girls, scaring them and forcing their trains of thought to be cut abruptly short.

Recovering from her momentary jump of fright, Akeno raised a curious eyebrow at the enigma beside her.

"You're done? What was it that you were doing, anyway?"

Smiling at the curious looks he was receiving from the girls beside him, he closed his uncovered eye and upon opening it again-

"GAH! WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOUR EYE!?"

Chuckling at their reactions, he suddenly vanished from their view.

"I was just gathering Senjutsu, that's all."

For the second time in a row, the two devils jumped at the unexpected voice. Akeno pouted. She wasn't used to someone getting the better of her so consistently. Koneko looked surprised. The Nekomata could feel the energy pouring off the strange boy in front of her, but she was unable to confirm nor deny if what he was saying was true.

So, she decided to ask.

"Is that… is that really natural energy…?"

Naruto cocked his head to the side at the soft-spoken girls' question.

"Yes, of course, it is." He frowned. "Why wouldn't it be?"

The ninja felt the tension the moment he had first mentioned Senjutsu, and it seemed to have only escalated since then.

The awkwardness set in.

She didn't answer.

"Well, uh…" Naruto coughed into his hand. "Why don't you try to see if you can harness your Senjutsu Neko-chan?"

Koneko shrunk in on herself and slowly shook her head.

"No… I-I can't…"

The blonde ninja slowly pressed.

"Koneko-chan… I think you can, but you just don't want to."

He smiled.

"Don't worry! I'm here, so there's nothing to worry about-!"

"I SAID I WON'T DO IT!"

Akeno stared in shock at the outburst from the usually docile girl while Naruto settled into a neutral expression.

"Koneko… I won't force you to do it. I just want to help-"

She continued screaming, uncontrollably.

"SHUT UP! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Koneko quickly fled the area leaving an annoyed devil and a conflicted ninja in her wake.

Akeno turned towards her roommate and frowned.

"You went way too far Naruto. You shouldn't have pushed her like that; she's very sensitive about this whole thing."

The blonde ninja just shook his head.

"No. You're wrong, Akeno. This is exactly what she needs."

The lightning maiden looked puzzled.

What could he have been talking about?

"Exactly what she needs?" She prodded. "How can you know that?"

He smiled sadly.

"Because, as I said, I've been there."

And with that, he vanished.

* * *

A small lake opened in front of the thick brush. Koneko sat in front of the deep water with her head down and a slight frown adorning her face.

"Stupid Senjutsu." She said quietly. "Who needs it?"

"I think you do, Neko-chan."

The white-haired girl did not react to the boys' sudden appearance other than the slight movement of her shrinking in on herself.

The reddening of her cheeks, however, highlighted her embarrassment at her previous outburst.

"I thought I told you to shut up and leave me alone."

He just chuckled and took a seat next to her.

"Are you sure you were talking to me when you said that?"

Koneko looked at him with an expression akin to surprise.

"What… What do you mean…?"

Naruto just stared over the water and didn't answer immediately.

The silence set in.

"I didn't tell you everything, Neko-chan. Sasuke wasn't the only reason why I've sometimes struggled with power. Though admittedly, in a way, he was probably my biggest drive to get stronger."

Koneko stayed silent and absorbed what he was saying.

Sasuke. He must have been the friend he mentioned before, she decided.

He continued.

"I was initially terrified of using Senjutsu. I mean, I was determined to learn it for sure, but there was always a fear I had that I wouldn't be good enough."

Koneko cocked her head to the side.

"Why…? You seem so confident and strong…"

Naruto smiled at her and lightly ruffled her hair.

"Yeah, now I am. But I sure as hell wasn't back then." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Okay… I always had confidence in my abilities. But it took me a long time to be able to back up what I was saying."

He then held out his hand he formed a one-handed Rasengan much to Koneko's surprise.

"What... is that?"

He grinned.

"One of my father's two trademark techniques, the Rasengan." Koneko watched with interest as the small bluish orb continued spinning in the strange boys' hand. "It takes energy from within myself, called chakra and focusses it into the palms of my hands. It's very destructive."

Koneko nodded slowly. She knew what chakra was, of course, but had never seen anyone utilize it so effortlessly.

Eventually the ball dissipated in his hand and he breathed out slightly.

"Even though I learned it quickly, it took many years for me to do it one-handed. Even longer for me to combine it with Senjutsu."

Koneko stayed silent.

Naruto looked at her and smiled sadly.

"I learned Senjutsu as a means of combating the man who killed my sensei." He paused. "He was far stronger than me back then… and I always had an insecurity that I wouldn't measure up. My sensei was… well, in his prime, and hell even in his later years, was probably the strongest man from my village."

The white-haired girl looked at him sadly.

"What… happened…?"

Naruto shook his head and smiled.

"I won. It took everything I had, and it was close, but I did it."

Koneko smiled back at him.

"I know that you can use Senjutsu already."

She just stared, shocked.

"Truthfully," he continued. "I could tell the moment I sensed the energy within you. You already can manipulate it freely, and I don't think your apathy towards the subject has anything to do with your sister."

She frowned at him.

"You don't know that. You can't-!"

"But I do know."

Her arguments fell silent.

Naruto turned his attention away from her face and back towards the water.

He waited for a moment.

"I don't know exactly what it is, but I have become very good at sensing people, and I know that your feelings towards your sister are not what is fueling this… problem, you seem to have."

The area went silent as a harsh wind passed through the area.

"Death is never easy."

Koneko stiffened instantly. Did he know-?

"And no, before you ask, Akeno never told me nor do I have any specifics." He spoke quietly. "Though, I can hazard a guess, that by your reaction just now, I was correct in my assumption."

Koneko just pouted. She hated being outsmarted.

Naruto grinned.

"I'm a prankster, Neko-chan. You'll find it's challenging to hide things from me when I'm paying attention."

The girl looked at him with curiosity.

"A prankster?"

He nodded.

"I used to be infamous in my hometown for that very reason… kinda got into a lot of trouble because of it." He trailed off, chuckling evilly all the while.

Koneko just sweat-dropped.

"But you know," he began, "I've had this assumption for a while: something happened to someone close to you all, right? Something recent, I'm guessing."

He got no response. It was all the answer he needed.

"I see." He said. "While I don't know who it was, or anything about them, they must have been someone fantastic, right?"

The white-haired girl sullenly nodded.

"Yeah… he was the best."

Naruto stayed silent for a few moments.

"Akeno. You can come out now. There's no sense in hiding any longer."

The shrine maiden blinked from behind the trees before coughing into her hand and approaching the duo with as much dignity as she could muster.

She really should learn not to underestimate him so much.

Taking a seat opposite to him, Akeno turned to the youngest member of the peerage and gave her a concerned look.

It wasn't returned.

Naruto, sensing the mood if only slightly, continued speaking.

"I may know who this person was that you all seemed to care so much about… but I don't care about that right now."

The two girls looked at him with frowns.

"What do you mean? Are you trying to invalidate-?"

"No. I would never say something like that. It goes against what I believe in."

Getting up from the ground, he brushed some dirt off his clothes and spoke.

"My sensei was far more than my teacher. He was someone I considered to be my grandfather and probably the greatest influence in my life." He sighed. "For better or for worse."

A shiver ran through his body.

Damn Icha Icha.

"Anyway." He coughed. "What I mean to say is this."

Turning back to them Naruto's expression became serious once more.

"It took me a while, and to this day, it still hurts." He looked down to his hand as it closed into a fist. "But I keep going. Everyone who has died lives on within me. Ero-sennin, Neji… my parents."

The two devils gasped at that.

Naruto just smiled. It was a full, genuine smile, which lit up the forestry around them.

"The pain hasn't lessened. But it has made me stronger because it's no longer just me. I'm with them, always, and your friend is too."

Akeno forced the conflicted expression off her face and replaced it with a smirk.

"You know Naruto-kun, that was pretty cheesy, even for you."

The blonde ninja face-faulted.

"Though," she smiled. "It was very sweet. Right, Koneko-chan?"

The white-haired girl nodded slowly.

"It was… interesting."

Naruto chuckled. He guessed that was as good as he was going to get with her for now.

Clapping his hands together he grinned.

"Alright! Let's see if we can't whip you into shape then!"

Koneko blanched at the statement.

"Wha-what do you mean?"

Grabbing the smaller girl by the scruff of her neck, he hoisted her up onto his shoulders against her will.

Damn, she was far heavier than he expected.

Looking up at her confused face, he decided to elaborate.

"Sometimes the only way to beat this crappy feeling is to train yourself so that it can never happen again."

Koneko looked like she wanted to argue and get off, but he just held on tighter.

Shifting the girl's weight to make her more comfortable, Naruto grinned.

"Alright! Let's go train!"

"Wait-!"

Koneko's cries fell on deaf ears as Naruto bolted out of the area and into a presumably similar looking space.

Akeno stared at their retreating forms with an unreadable expression on her face.

Why he didn't just stay where they were, was beyond her.

The shrine maiden stared at the forestry with a warm smile on her face. The enigma that was Naruto Uzumaki grows that much larger, it seems.

Suddenly, realization struck, as Akeno noticed he had, once again, abandoned her for Koneko.

"I know it's not like he did it on purpose or anything but…"

She sighed. It was all she could really do given the situation.

Even though he had told her such intimate details about himself, she still felt no closer to him than before.

Of course, there was _one_ thing she got out of it all.

"He's incredibly cute, _and _incredibly dense. Both, in equal measure."

* * *

**Side Note: **Reading through the reviews I've gotten so far, (which thank you all so much, it's great:)), most of the response is positive, which is awesome :D. As for the negatives, which is par for the course, the biggest complaint people seem to have is regarding Naruto's power level and his personality. I'll answer both here:

Power Level: I SUCK at writing fight scenes. Period. Complete garbage. I also don't find them particularly interesting to write, or read, in general; so don't expect them except when the plot requires it to happen. I also need Naruto to be as powerful as God. :P It's necessary for the story later. Sorry if that's an issue!

Personality: As for this, I completely understand. I've kinda taken aspects of Naruto from his early shippuden days to how he is as an adult and mashed them together. I just find it easier to write, and more fun. Hope that's okay! If not, don't read. I get why you don't enjoy it:).

**A/N: **And with that, we officially have the original three chapters uploaded and redone! (I'll probably take down the remastered part of the title at some point in the future). I hope you enjoyed this. Keep in mind, future updates will NOT be this quick or consistent. I have a few more chapters done, but I want to make sure they are up to snuff :). (On top of everything else I need to finish writing lol). Keep up the awesome support! Reviews especially, are well-loved and motivate me greatly :D


	4. A True (Cat) of Hard Work

**Disclaimer: **Been half a year but nope, still don't own either property.

* * *

**Chapter 4 - A True (Cat) of Hard Work**

"Come on Neko-chan, you can do it!"

Koneko panted as sweat dripped down her forehead. She had never felt so exhausted before.

By the Maou was this guy a slave driver!

"I'm… *pant* trying senpai…"

Naruto frowned at his self-proclaimed pupil.

"Senpai?" He shook his head mockingly. "That's sensei to you. For that, drop and give me twenty."

Koneko gulped and quickly did as she was told. She learned the hard way not to go against her teacher's orders.

The pink hair dye took hours to get out.

Akeno, from her place on the sidelines, couldn't help but sweat drop at the ridiculous training program her junior was being put through. It was so harsh she could almost see Naruto as being some form of sadist.

The thought made her blush.

"What are you thinking about, Akeno?"

"EEP!"

The half-devil held a hand to her beating heart. That was too close.

"Naruto-kun," she pouted. "I thought I told you to stop doing that."

He shrugged. "I have no clue what you're talking about."

Though, to be fair, she half-expected it to go in one ear and out the other so she wasn't all that surprised.

Deciding to pick her battles, she instead motioned towards the injured girl ahead of them.

"Naruto-kun, not that I don't trust you… but don't you think that you're being a little harsh on her?"

Akeno was concerned. While she did not believe her roommate had any ill intentions for the Nekomata, his training schedule was nothing less than absurd.

"It's only the second day and I think you've already forced her to endure as much training as she participated in, this whole past year combined. Why are you pushing her to such an impossible degree?"

Naruto looked her in the eye.

"Akeno, I want you to consider something."

She furrowed her brows but consented.

"If you lack the conviction, or in other words, the mental fortitude, to progress forward, no matter how hard you try, then what else can you do? Or is it impossible to improve if you reach such an impasse?"

Akeno was confused.

"I'm not sure that I understand the question."

Naruto turned to analyze the heavily breathing girl ahead of them.

"There was someone in my village who did not have the abilities the rest of us did. He was stunted from birth and left to fend for himself. No one believed in him, or his potential. In fact, his sensei, was really the only one who did. He was branded as the dead last in his generation and was told to drop out hundreds of times."

Akeno cocked her head.

"That sounds sad. I suppose that he must have been rather discouraged?"

Naruto scoffed.

"Hardly." The shinobi furrowed his brow. "While I'm sure he felt that way at times, he never once let that show. He had a determination to him that was so incredibly rare. One that was born not only to prove that his sensei's faith in him was deserved, but also to show that one could be strong even when born without natural talent. Or power."

He smiled wistfully.

"And he did it. He pushed his body physically beyond its natural limits and then even farther still. A true genius of hard work they called him."

The blonde turned to her; smile gone.

"Neko-chan still can't, or at least, _won't,_ access her Senjutsu currently. I'm unable to force her to do anything she doesn't want to, but I can help her on another front. If she can't continue onwards by strengthening her mind, then her body should come first. One step at a time."

He shrugged.

"That's how I see it anyway."

With that he walked back over to his pupil, the promise of pain on his face, leaving Akeno to her thoughts.

"Well, at least now I know for a fact that he is taking this whole training thing seriously but…" she let out a sigh. "I'm still not convinced he knows what he's doing…"

"DID YOU JUST BACKTALK ME _AGAIN_ NEKO-CHAN!? DROP AND GIVE ME ANOTHER FIFTY!"

Koneko's cries echoed throughout the forest.

Poor girl.

* * *

Sunday came and went. Koneko dragged her small, tired body back to her home with nary a word to her self-proclaimed sensei or her peerage's queen.

Naruto looked proud. Akeno felt exasperated.

"I really hope you know what you're doing with her…"

The ninja just shrugged.

"Eh, I think I do. It's better than sitting around moping, anyway."

The half-devil just sweat-dropped at the nonchalant dismissal.

He was too detached from reality, she decided.

Taking a pleasant stroll back to her house she continued stealing glances at the mysterious boy beside her.

The blonde appeared intrigued by everything around him. He acted childish, as if every object they came across was something he wanted to know more about.

It was cute, admittedly, but it was still strange.

Naruto was an enigma. True he did explain that his village was far from civilization, but it almost felt like that was not the real reason behind his lack of knowledge.

If she didn't know better, she-

"It's a nice day out isn't it, Akeno?"

Looking over at the serene expression marring his face, she couldn't help but share it.

No matter what he is, Naruto was her friend above all else.

"Yeah. It sure is."

So, she dropped her train of thought.

**The Following Day:**

"NO, I DON'T WANNA GO BACK! PLEASE DON'T MAKE ME GO BACK!"

Akeno cackled sadistically as she dragged her 'willing' peer to their school grounds.

She was almost thankful that he had forgotten about his temporary enrollment.

It made things all the sweeter.

"Akeno…?"

The girl looked down at the blonde with the most divine expression she could manage.

"Yes, Naruto-kun…?"

He pouted. "Why do I have to come back here again? I thought that was a one-time deal."

The queen looked at him in confusion.

"One-time deal…?" She feigned ignorance. "I don't remember saying anything to that effect, do you?"

The boy just looked away from her in annoyance.

"Well no but…" He tried desperately to find some way out of his situation. "But how did you even manage to get me enrolled like this? I'm sure that couldn't have been easy, and I'd rather not inconvenience you."

She just smiled coyly.

"Oh, it was no trouble at all. You'd be surprised just how easy it was, Naruto-kun."

It turns out that she was personal friends with the student council president.

Of course. Why not.

His expression darkened.

"Life sucks."

The girl ignored his complaints and continued onwards, dragging him all the while.

She smiled brightly.

He really did bring amusement to her sad life.

"Oi! Stop dragging me around or I swear that I'll scream assault!"

Her eye twitched.

… And annoyance.

* * *

School was hell. It was possibly even worse than Friday and Naruto did not think that was possible.

"Who knew that Japanese history could be so… boring."

The ninja hung his head over the railing, depression evident.

Naruto was currently alone on the school's roof, waiting for Akeno to bring him his lunch. Thankfully, she was still offering to cover his expenses.

For some reason.

Although now that he was alone, the crushing reality of his situation was starting to weigh down on his shoulders. He had been trying to push it out of his mind.

He couldn't anymore.

"I really should be looking for a way back but I'm not sure how I can do that."

As if in reaction to his statement, the eye he kept covered began pulsating sporadically.

Gnashing his teeth, he tried to lessen the pain by cupping the eye socket.

It helped. Marginally.

"I know this is the reason I was sent here… but I have no clue what to do about it." The pain lessened. "Hell, I still have no clue how to even open it let alone use it."

Did it work the same way Kakashi's did, in that the Sharingan was always active? Or was it something he had to learn to turn on and off.

He couldn't help but sigh.

"If only I had someone to help me figure this crap out."

The sudden appearance of someone behind him cut his train of thought short.

Naruto blinked.

He hadn't sensed anyone coming, yet here he was. They looked far too old to be a student and he wasn't dressed to be a member of faculty.

That left-

"So, what were you talking to yourself about over there? It's impressive you're even moving at all, to be honest. Last I heard of you, I could have sworn you were in critical condition…?"

Well, that settled it.

"Who are you?" Naruto got up and stared the newcomer down. "And for that matter, how did you know that?"

The man just chuckled.

"Not denying it, eh? Not very smart. I could very well be probing you for information that I didn't have until you admitted it." He shrugged. "Either you're confident enough in your abilities to not care about what you say, or you're just stupid."

Naruto's eyes just narrowed further. He refused to fall for the taunts.

Though, it was still incredibly difficult not to.

"Maa, maa it's just a joke. Don't worry so much."

The man grinned.

"So how about we skip school for the day, eh? Something tells me that you're not really the type to care about it anyway."

It was a trap. It was a mistake to even consider leaving with him.

"Plus," the man continued. "I don't think I need to tell you that I know more than I let on. Wouldn't you like to talk to someone who may be able to help you with your… unique situation?"

Fuck it.

"Fine."

No one ever got anywhere without a little risk.

The grin etched on the man's face deepened as he motioned the younger male to follow him off the roof.

Jumping off the building in an instant, the shinobi missed the sound of a door opening behind him.

"Naruto…?"

* * *

The place Naruto had been led to was strange.

There was no other word to really describe it. It was just strange.

There were gadgets, knick-knacks and other bizarre objects littering the dimly lit room, without rhyme or reason. It certainly didn't give an impression of organization from the mysterious individual in front of him.

He was powerful, though. Naruto concluded.

He was not sure how strong. He assumed in an all-out fight he would come out on top, probably rather decidedly. Still, he wished to avoid testing that, if possible.

There would do far more damage to the surrounding property than Naruto was willing to cover.

The man suddenly stopped walking and collapsed onto his couch with an exaggerated sigh.

"Damn. I forgot how draining it was to even be around a school. I feel for ya."

Naruto despite himself smirked lightly.

"Yeah. It's hell alright."

The man beside him chuckled.

"Well this would usually be the time when I'd offer you something to drink but…" he motioned around himself. "as you can see, I haven't had anyone over in a while. Unfortunately, this means that I don't have anything other than sake."

Naruto shook his head, turning away from the hand offering him a drink.

"I'm fine."

The man shrugged. "Alright. Suit yourself."

Sitting down in a free chair, Naruto began to feel himself relax as the other man began drinking.

There was something nostalgic about the whole thing.

"You know I'm surprised you haven't asked me about my identity yet. I had gotten the impression that you were someone who jumped into things headfirst. I expected some blunt remarks by now."

Something was wrong.

"How is it that you know so much about me, anyway?" Naruto started. "You're obviously not human. So, you must belong to one of the three factions."

Taking a sip from his shot glass, the man put it down with a content smile on his face.

"Ahhhh." He sighed. "Nothing like a good lunchtime drink, wouldn't you agree?"

Naruto said nothing. He had no experience with alcohol, and he wasn't sure how it would go.

His expression told all.

"Never tried any, eh? Well… that's alright. I'll get you a drink next time I see ya. We all start at some point, after all."

The ninja rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Ah, maybe I guess-"

"Now." He leaned forward. "Let's talk."

* * *

"NARUTO-KUN!"

"Whiskers-senpai…?"

The two devils were walking around the schoolyard after their last period. They were currently searching for their blonde-haired friend who was as elusive as he was mysterious.

That was saying a lot.

"Ara, ara, he sure doesn't want to be found does he Koneko-chan?"

She shook her head before shivering at the look upon her senpai's face.

"Well he better show up soon otherwise I'm gonna make tonight very hard for him."

Koneko decided not to ask what she meant by that. Smart girl.

What felt like an hour had passed by this point and the two devils had all but given up. If Naruto did not want to be caught, then it was obvious to them that he wouldn't be.

Akeno sighed.

"I _was_ going to give him a piece of my mind for skipping school." She began. "but now…"

She bit her lip and trailed off. Koneko looked at her with a concerned glint in her eye.

"You're worried about him."

Akeno blushed lightly before shaking her head.

"No, I'm not. I know he's strong enough to take care of himself."

Koneko wasn't convinced but decided it best not to push.

The small girl looked around; something having popped into her mind now that they were alone. She was unsure about whether to approach the topic or not. She bit her lip before speaking up.

"Akeno…?"

The busty girl blinked before turning to look at the Nekomata who was suddenly staring at the ground.

"Yes, Koneko-chan? Is something wrong?"

The white-haired girl took a while to speak. Formulating her thoughts on such a delicate subject was not easy for her.

"I just wanted to say that I'm…" she exhaled. "I'm sorry."

Akeno was now _very _confused. "Sorry? Sorry for what, exactly?"

Koneko felt smaller than usual. She spoke quietly, so quietly that her peer had to ask her to repeat it.

"I'm sorry for everything…" she eventually got out, biting her lip harder to prevent any tears from being shed. She was done with crying.

Before she could be interrupted, she kept speaking.

"I treated you badly because… because Issei… died." She got out. "It wasn't right. We all treated each other so poorly because it hurt. I didn't care anymore. But you were always right there trying to keep us all together and we never thanked you for it. Even though you were hurt too we just kept ignoring you. So… so… thank you for being there… and I'm sorry."

Koneko went silent. She wasn't used to speaking so much, especially not in such an emotional manner. Naruto really affected her, it seemed.

A moment later and she felt a pair of lips plant a kiss on her forehead.

Looking up she took in the tender expression of Akeno as the older girl hugged her close.

"Thank you Koneko-chan. You don't know how much that means to me." She spoke softly, calmly. "It wasn't easy. I tried… I tried so hard to fix things, but it never worked. Eventually I broke down and prayed, if you could believe it. I wished for a miracle to save us and… I think we were given one."

"Whiskers-senpai…"

Akeno nodded with a bright smile. Koneko looked at her superior's smile with a small one of her own.

"He is…" she trailed off. "… good."

It was a simple word, from a girl who was used to giving simple sentences and it described the mysterious boy very well.

"Yes." Akeno chuckled. "He is certainly good."

They continued hugging one another as they felt a weight lift off their respective shoulders.

Suddenly Koneko's head popped up.

"Whiskers-senpai…?"

Akeno snapped to attention and looked in the direction the Nekomata was facing. Sure enough, Naruto was walking towards the school building.

His eyes were glassy, unfocussed.

"Naruto-kun?"

The teen in question blinked before realizing who called his name. Looking up from the ground he stared at the girls in front of him and smiled.

"Akeno! Neko-chan! What are the two of you up to?"

The lightning maiden put her hands on her hips and leaned forward.

"We were looking for you. You're the one that needs to explain why he left school so early."

Naruto began sweating.

"Ah… well…"

Akeno began standing over him with a devilish smirk on her face.

"Well…?"

The ninja became drenched.

Then he moved.

"Well, Neko-chan it's time to get back to training!"

The white-haired girl blinked as she was suddenly picked up by the blonde who seemed to vanish from their peripheral vision.

"No, wait-"

A quick shunshin later and they vanished from the area.

Akeno just stared at the empty space the two previously occupied.

Then she began cracking her knuckles.

"Ara, ara. Naruto-kun you're playing a very dangerous game here." She began to slowly walk towards the makeshift training area.

"It's time for me to show you just how dangerous it really is."

Her laughter echoed throughout the area; a sound that scant belong there.

* * *

Akeno took her time to arrive in the designated clearing. It was slow, methodical, and done in a way to metaphorically strike fear into the heart of her target. Though, when she arrived, he just gave her a smile and went back to 'instructing' his kouhai.

Apparently, he already forgot that she was angry with him.

Her plan failed before it even began.

Sweat-dropping at his low attention span she felt her annoyance eb away before smiling resignedly. She found staying angry at him difficult. That didn't mean he was off the hook, however.

"Ne, Naruto-kun." She smiled huskily, draping over his back. "You were gone _all _day. Leaving such an innocent maiden such as myself all by her lonesome. That wasn't very _nice of you…"_

The Devil's final three words were all accentuated by some throaty breaths on his neck causing a shiver to run down his body.

He gulped. "Ah yeah, sorry about that Akeno. I was… pre-occupied with something."

She unlatched herself from his body and cocked her head to the side.

"Pre-occupied? With what, exactly?"

He looked conflicted before shrugging.

"Well no sense in hiding it I suppose. I was approached by somebody from a different faction. He knew who I was, to a degree, so I-gah-!"

"Are you okay, Naruto-kun!? You didn't get hurt or anything, right?"

He was about to retaliate from her incessant questions before he looked in her eyes and saw the deep concern within them.

Swallowing a lump that formed in his throat he nodded slowly. "Yeah… yeah I'm fine."

"Thanks… for worrying about me." He finished quietly.

Though, judging by her delicate smile she heard him clearly.

He began considering his options. Should he tell her about it? It didn't take him long to come to a decision.

"Oi, Neko-chan!" Naruto yelled out suddenly. "I want you to focus on the meditation form I showed you earlier today. Do that until I say so and you'll be done for the evening."

The white-haired Nekomata nodded slowly at the command and sat down in the manner he was taught by the toads.

Akeno looked intrigued by the turn of events but before she could ask him about it, he turned and began walking away from the area. Motioning for her to follow him he sat on a tree stump, an adjacent one next to him.

Raising an eyebrow at his actions Naruto shrugged.

"I figured you wanted to know about where I've been today, and I don't want to distract Neko-chan from her meditation." he motioned around him. "This place is secluded whilst also allowing me direct line of sight of her in case something goes wrong."

She nodded slowly at his reasoning before a pout unwittingly wormed its way onto her face.

The shinobi grumbled at her expression.

"Alright… what did I do this time, Akeno?"

"That."

He looked confused.

"That…? What do you mean?"

Suddenly she looked nervous. It was an expression he had only seen once, and he felt it didn't belong to her.

"Ara, it's just…" she trailed off. "You call Koneko-chan, 'Neko-chan' and you don't add that moniker to my name. Makes it seem as if she's closer to you than I am."

Naruto stared at her for a second before a smile broke out across her face.

"Is this better, Akeno-chan?"

She blushed lightly at his question before nodding slowly. A heat broke out across her chest and she had trouble breathing for a second. She coughed into her hand and smiled genuinely.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun. I appreciate that."

A companionable silence fell over the area. Naruto closed his eye as he took in the beautiful air surrounding them.

It was peaceful.

"Ara, ara, Naruto-kun? I thought you were going to tell me what happened earlier?"

Oh, right.

Cracking open his eye he stretched his arms above his head and nodded.

His head falling to the side in thought he started quietly.

"Where to start…?"

"From the beginning?"

He dead-panned at her answer.

"Har har, you smart-ass."

She just giggled.

He paused.

"Well… it started when I went up to the roof for lunch. I was approached by this strange man who looked to be in his late twenties, early thirties." Naruto mulled his words around. "I was immediately on edge as I hadn't sensed him coming. That's not something which is easy to do, let me say that."

Akeno nodded slowly. She figured as much.

"Anyway, he mentioned that the last he had seen of me I looked to be in critical condition or something of the sort. I can't remember his exact wording. That's not important though. What is, is that he was obviously high up on the food chain when it comes to the factions. He knew secrets that, from what you mentioned, only a _very _select few, aside from your peerage, know."

She didn't deny his words. It was worrying. That meant Naruto had been approached by someone of significant power; both politically and in the general sense as well.

The ninja didn't seem too concerned, however.

"So, he invited me over to talk." He grunted. "Initially I was hesitant, of course. While I didn't deny my identity, it was more than likely a trap."

"So, you decided to fight him then?" Akeno reasoned.

After all, why would he go to a secluded place of his unknown enemy's choosing-?

"Nope. I went with him."

"WHAT!?"

Akeno's outburst felt justified in her mind. Though, judging by his annoyed expression, he didn't agree.

"Do you have to shout so loud, Akeno-chan? I'm fine, aren't I? I trust my abilities. I know I wouldn't be taken down so easily."

She bit her lip. If she was honest, she wasn't particularly enthused with the idea that he would purposefully put himself into such a precarious situation. Though she remembered his show of speed from the other day and what Sirzechs had told her.

This young man was far stronger than he appeared.

"Sorry, Naruto-kun. Please continue."

The blonde acquiesced.

"Well, we arrived at his place not long after. It was incredibly messy. Even more so than my old apartment back in my village." He chuckled fondly causing her to smile. "He offered me a drink though I declined. The situation was very… relaxed. Being with him felt familiar somehow."

His roommate cocked her head.

"Familiar? How so?"

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"He reminds me of my old mentor. A lazy perverted drunk."

Akeno face-faulted.

"Though," he continued, smiling fondly. "He was powerful, kind and wise. Incredibly so. He was a grandfather to me, and he helped me get where I am today. This guy, he just felt like that to me."

She didn't say anything. The tender smile on his face was more precious than any painting or sculpture she had ever laid eyes on.

It was beautiful.

Naruto shook his head. "Eventually though, he leaned forward and started explaining things to me."

Akeno said nothing as he began to relegate his time.

"_Now." His voice cut through the Naruto's. "Let's talk."_

_The blonde ninja nodded slowly and sat down across from him. The chair was soft and felt very expensive._

_Obviously, the man was far richer than he initially appeared._

"_Alright then." Naruto started. "I'll bite. What is it that you wished to talk about?"_

_The older man sized him up for a second. _

_He looked to be considering his words. "You are strong, aren't you? Very strong."_

_Never one to shy away from his accomplishments the shinobi shrugged in agreement. No sense in denying it._

_The man barked in laughter._

"_Good. I'm glad to hear it. I think this world needed someone of your strength."_

_Naruto looked confused. The man didn't elaborate._

"_Moving on then. Do you mind if I ask you a question about your abilities?"_

_The ninja narrowed his eyes._

"_Only if you tell me about yours, first. I'm not giving information away for free, over here."_

_The man raised his hands in a placating manner._

"_Maa, maa don't give me such a scary face. It's fine, I can tell you about myself." He stood up briefly and in a show of power showed off his multiple pairs of black wings. "Aside from this, which signifies me being at the height of races' power, I also have multiple sacred gears that give me boosts of temporary abilities in different areas. Of course, they are all experimental and aren't permanent like ordinary ones are, but still."_

_The Genin nodded slowly. He remembered his crash course in the supernatural world from Akeno, where she had briefly gone over the mysterious objects known as Sacred Gears. She looked decidedly depressed when talking about their most powerful forms, the Longinus if he remembered correctly, and so he had changed topics. He doubted they were relevant in this case, anyway._

_Naruto formed a Rasengan in his palm much to the man's intrigue. "I can use chakra and, in turn, Senjutsu. I know that in this world, only the Youkai faction can do this, but I assure you I am not one of them."_

_He chuckled at the ironic statement._

_The older man looked at him seriously for a moment._

"_You can utilize these things to such a degree, but you claim to not be yokai? What are you then?"_

_It was a very open-ended question. _

_Naruto smiled brightly._

"_Human."_

_The man was surprised. Though he accepted it quickly and laughed loudly._

"_Human, eh?" he clapped. "Interesting. Very interesting, indeed. I've never met a human with power even close to yours. I also couldn't help but notice that you claim to not use a Sacred Gear either, is that right?"_

_The Shinobi nodded slowly._

"_Yeah. I only learned about them recently. I use what I told you about before and… little else."_

_He felt his eyebrow raise at the rather sudden cut-off._

"_So, you have something else you can do then…?"_

_Naruto grimaced. Keeping things under wraps was never his specialty._

_A vulpine grin was his response._

"_Hey, there's no need to worry kid. I _did _kinda call you here because Sirzechs mentioned that your power levels were potentially higher than his. I wanted to learn more about what you could do." He shrugged good naturedly. "Needless to say, if what you're telling me is true then I would have to say he may have had some validity in his assumptions."_

_Naruto remained silent. Apparently, that was confirmation in his conversationalists' eyes._

"_Alright," he took another swig. "Now, then. With that out of the way, let's talk about the main reason I asked you to come here."_

"_The main reason…?" Naruto blinked._

"_That's right." He admitted. Taking one more swig of sake he put the saucer down and leaned forward…_

Akeno found herself doing the same. Engaged in the story she leaned forward and stared deep into his eyes. Silence enveloped the area as the Queen eagerly awaited him to continue his story.

Then, he spoke up.

"… and that's it."

Akeno face faulted.

"Eh!? What do you mean that's it!? You obviously cut your story off half-way through, Naruto-kun. That's not fair. Especially when you just got to the good part." The Queen pouted. "What else did you guys discuss?"

Against his better judgement, he kept silent.

"Ara, ara, you're playing with fire here Naruto-kun." Her tone dipping lower as she pushed her breasts together enticingly. "Are you sure you don't want to continue talking…? I may not be able to hold myself back, you bad boy."

The ninja immediately blushed and turned away to regain some control. Internally, however, he frowned. He was conflicted. The rest of the conversation was something he intended to keep to himself. Mostly due to the subject material pertaining to dimensional travel and those who could wield it. He wasn't quite ready to tell the girl everything, nor did he want to worry her. Considering who he intended to seek out, it would serve to do exactly that.

There was no helping it then.

"It's nothing Akeno-chan." He smiled brightly. "Just a bit of banter that doesn't need to be repeated. The old geezer tried to catch me off guard with a stupid joke that I wasn't ready for. That's all."

'… _**what do you know about dimensional travel?'**_

"Are you sure…?"

He grinned.

'_**Hoh, is that so? Well what about the beings who govern this world's existence? Care to tell me about them?'**_

"Positive."

Despite his worries, he kept his façade up. He hoped she would drop it.

She remained unconvinced, much to his chagrin.

"Can't you tell me, please…?"

Her voice cut deep. Begging didn't suit her, and it hurt his heart to hear her resort to it.

'_**Your only chance is to seek them out… but can you really afford to do that…? You'd be walking into a trap. One I'm not sure you could walk out of.'**_

He wanted to tell her. To spill the entirety of the conversation, and the events that lead him here. It's what he was _dying _to do.

Was that the best option, though? Naruto wasn't sure.

He internally grimaced.

What should he do-?

"Whiskers-senpai…?" Koneko yelled. "Can you come help me? I'm struggling to keep myself still."

Taking the sudden interruption and running with it he got up from the stump and practically blinked over to the Nekomata. Absentmindedly he began to adjust her posture and run down the instructions he had given her earlier.

Akeno watched it all unfold as her expression fell.

'_I know that we still don't completely trust each other yet, but it hurts when he shuts me out so suddenly like that…' _she shook her head resolutely. _'No. There's no reason to get so upset about it. I'll just have to prove to him that I'm someone he can rely on. If he really intends to do what he said he would that night, he'll need all the help he can get, and I'll be the one to give it.'_

That in mind, the anxiety she felt building, dissipated rapidly. Her expression softening as she watched the byplay take place in front of her. The small upturn of the young girls' lips bringing a wider smile to hers.

She was glad.

**Two Hours Later:**

Waving with a bright grin on the blonde ninja chuckled as he watched Koneko walk away with a serious limp in her step.

Naruto felt proud. The girl had spunk; he'd give her that. If she could just move past her insecurities, she'd go far.

He eyed the girl next to him who looked to be finding the right words to speak.

"Yes, Akeno-chan?" he drawled. "could I help you with something?"

She blushed lightly at being caught staring. She coughed into her fist to try and regain some dignity.

"Ara, ara, why yes Naruto-kun you can." Akeno crooned. "I wished to know the name of the man you talked with. It's a rather important detail you skimped out on and I'm sure you know it. I already have my suspicions, anyway. I'd just like to have them confirmed."

The ninja crossed his arms in thought, considering his options. Then, he shrugged.

"Fine, I guess. It's not like it's some big secret or anything."

**Earlier:**

_Naruto got up to leave. He had heard enough. _

"_Ne, not gonna give me your name before you head out? What a rude guest."_

_Naruto deadpanned._

"_You haven't done that either. I thought hosts were supposed to give their names out _before_ inviting somebody over."_

_He smirked._

"_Yeah, well. I have been told that my social skills need work, sue me."_

_The shinobi sweat-dropped. _'No shit.'

_The blonde ran a hand through his head._

"_Fine. My name is Naruto Uzumaki, future Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village."_

_The other person blinked before he began laughing uproariously._

"_That's so cool! I mean I have no clue what you said but it sounded badass!"_

_He paused._

"He said his name was…"

"_My name is…"_

Akeno's eyes narrowed in confirmation.

"Azazel."

* * *

**A/N: **DUN DUN DUN! Okay… so maybe it was super obvious but wtv;p. I couldn't think of a way to end the chapter and I had to finally get this out. But yeah.

Also… yeah, a seven month gap for updates is ridiculous. I got no excuses lol. I just get busy and then forget about writing honestly. But hey, I got a bit more done so we'll see what happens x). Thank you all so much for the support guys. I love all of you.


	5. Stalker from Another Mother

**Disclaimer: **Me, own either property? Nah.

* * *

**Chapter 5 – Stalker from Another Mother**

Naruto woke with a start. Breathing heavily; and sweating profusely, he wished he could say this wasn't habit by this point, but he'd be lying if he did. The beautiful face of his sleeping companion, however, brought a smile to his face.

Though his mind was scattered.

'_I had that same damn dream again. This is getting annoying.'_

He grumbled lightly.

'_It always starts with the war and ends with a pair of darkened eyes. They aren't like an Uchiha's, though, I'm sure of that. I wonder who they belong to…'_

He was lost. He hated not having answers. A run might clear his head.

Nodding, he made a quick substitution with a nearby, unused pillow, and left the room as quietly as possible.

A change of clothes later and he was running down the stairs past the shrine at a breakneck speed. Far faster than what was humanely possible. Though, in his mind it was only a brisk jog.

Heading down the street towards the town in the early hours of the morning was therapeutic. It put his mind at ease as he quietly began talking to himself.

"Those damn eyes… I'm not gonna get anywhere just thinking about them. Maybe I should ask Akeno-chan or Azazel if they know anyone with them?"

He scoffed. That seemed rather fruitless. He was sure that a lot of people they knew had eyes of that color. Even if they didn't, what proof did he have that it even meant anything? None.

"Speaking of eyes, I should probably start working on getting my own eye problem fixed."

Naruto grunted as he adjusted the patch currently covering his transplanted Sharingan. Changing the cloth every evening was annoying. It was something that had to be done, of course, but it only made him that much more determined to figure things out.

"Should I send some of my clones into the forest to work on it maybe?" he posed the question to himself. "I could split them into two groups. One, working on the eye, while the others brainstorm ways to get home. Maybe reverse summoning could work? Though I doubt it."

The concept of the summoning jutsu had popped into his head more than once over the past few days since he arrived in this new world. However, he figured it would be a rather pointless venture. He remembered in his past lessons with Jiraiya that an immense amount of chakra was required to bring out the largest summons from Mount Myoboku. He couldn't even _begin_ to imagine how much would be needed to reverse himself back there.

"Normally though, that wouldn't be a problem. Unfortunately, Kurama is still unavailable. I haven't heard from him at all since I got here." He mused. "On top of that, for some reason, I can't even get _into_ my sewer-scape. It's almost as if something is stopping me from doing so. Blocking our connection even from inside my own mind."

He had no idea how that was possible.

So, he decided it best not to linger on it.

Taking a quick detour, he bolted towards the forest, reaching it in record time. Grinning at the wide-open area he made his favorite hand seal.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Immediately an explosion of smoke occurred and close to five hundred clones of the ninja appeared in the area.

Naruto blinked.

"I didn't mean to make quite _that _many. Oops."

Evidently not using chakra aside from the occasional Rasengan for the past week caused his chakra control to plummet once again.

It was a problem easily fixed, however.

"Alright, guys. I want you all to join one of two teams." He motioned them apart. "Break apart at this line."

The order was followed posthaste.

"Good. Now you guys are going to be focusing on improving our chakra control again. Keep going until you can get a precise amount, then I want you all to see if you can summon _anything _from the summoning jutsu. In our world you would be able to get at least a tadpole but I'm guessing it won't be as easy here. I'll try by myself later tonight when my chakra is restored. Also, if anything comes to mind regarding dimensional travel, make sure to discuss it amongst yourselves."

Naruto paused before cutting into his wrist to let a good amount of blood flow into a medical vial. As clones they would be unable to get it themselves without dispersing. Nodding at his instructions, they walked off try and began to work on improving their chakra control.

"Now then," Naruto began, turning to the others, "you guys are going to be trying to get the Sharingan to work. You can do a bunch of different tests. I don't care what you do; anything you think could give useful results, try it. I know you guys won't sustain yourselves through too much pain but just do your best. This is more for preliminary research before I set out to work on it myself."

Agreeing with the given commands, they all split off and began to test different limitations that the eye came with.

Naruto smirked at the usefulness of his favorite jutsu before heading out of the area.

Looking up at the position of the sun he figured he still had a good hour before he had to get back and prepare for school. Taking a walk downtown he smiled lightly at the peaceful nature of the area. It was quiet, as there were very few people around this early in the morning.

Typically, people don't go outside before seven AM after all.

Usually he'd be the same way. However, the mind can be a problematic thing when it wants to be.

"Please stop saying things like that… I-it makes me feel uncomfortable-"

"Nonsense Asia-chan! There's no need to be so coy. You and I both know we are meant to be together."

Naruto snapped to attention at the voices which intruded his thoughts. Not far ahead, and just off the path of the sidewalk, he saw a vaguely familiar blonde girl talking to some handsome-looking man.

"Why do you say that…?" the girl asked quietly, her breathing becoming labored.

The man narrowed his eyes for a split second. Then he smiled. "Why, you saved me of course! Don't you remember Asia-chan?"

Naruto looked at the scene with worry. He may not know what was going on exactly, but he knew he didn't like it.

"I-I know I did but I don't want to go with you-"

"I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU WANT!" The man suddenly shouted; his eyes wide with madness. "YOU AND I ARE MEANT TO BE TOGETHER FOREVER! I WON'T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER-!"

Just as his hand was about to grasp the terrified girls' shoulder, his wrist was caught.

"I'm just going to go ahead and stop you right there, teme."

The to-be-assaulter stared with unbridled fury at the one who _dared _to stop him.

"Who… the _fuck_…" he spoke quietly. "Do… you think… YOU ARE!"

Naruto just raised an eyebrow as he felt the energy from the one in his grasp rise considerably. Of course, it wasn't even close to an amount that made him feel he had to let go, but still. It was something?

The ninja yawned. "I'm no one important. What's important here, buddy, is that you were about to assault miss bishop over here." His smile was anything but friendly. "And unfortunately for you I'm not in a very forgiving mood today."

Asia stared at the blonde in complete shock. She remembered him well. Despite her lack of cognition during the past few weeks this person stuck out like a sore thumb. A man who should have, by all intents and purposes, died the first day they saw him, was alive and well. In fact, he seemed overwhelmingly powerful.

As if the terrifying man in front of him wasn't even a minor inconvenience for him.

Diodora was many things. Stupid wasn't one of them. His overtly insane attitude may lead many to believe this is the case, but it simply isn't true.

He knew when he was outmatched.

"Now, now." Naruto smiled with his canines showing. "Don't give me such a cowed look now, teme. You were about to show this girl how things are done, weren't you? Don't tell me that you're so much of a letdown that you won't even try to anymore…?"

Asia watched as a faint red outline covered the blonde boy in front of her. It felt dark, raw, _evil_… but for some strange reason she wasn't scared of it. Though, she noted, he seemed unaware he was doing anything.

Diodora's eyes widened in rage. To reiterate; was he stupid? No. But was he prone to anger?

Certainly.

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME, DAMN YOU-! GAH!?"

He was cut off by a sudden crushing of his wrist. It was almost as if all the bones inside it had suddenly shattered, becoming nothing more than dust within his body.

The Devil began screaming.

And just like that the spell broke and Naruto's mind cleared.

'_The hell was that?' _he grunted. _'It felt like Kurama's chakra mixed with something else. But that's not possible, is it? I can't even contact him.'_

Looking at the man stuck in his grasp he decided to act quickly. A pinch to the man's neck and he was out like a light. Despite his occupation he never enjoyed causing lasting pain on others. Even when they deserved it like this giant prick-

"Ano… are you alright…?"

Naruto blinked before turning his head to look at the unsure expression on the girl behind him. Her eyes were wide, and she looked as if she could topple over at any time.

He immediately felt bad.

"Ah, sorry about that Bishop-san. Try to forget what you just saw, alright? That shouldn't happen again." _'I hope.'_

She just nodded slowly, unsurely.

The blonde boy grinned at her.

"Good! Oh, I think introductions are in order!" He bowed in an over-exaggerated fashion. "Naruto Uzumaki at your service!"

Asia blinked at him before she began giggling. She stopped quickly after realizing what she was doing, much to his confusion.

It still didn't feel right to… enjoy life. Not while others no longer could.

"A-ah. I'm Asia Argento." She bowed back. "Thank you for that, Uzumaki-san."

He grinned at her overly formal introduction putting a name to the face. Akeno had given him a crash-course the other day about who was in the peerage, but he only connected their respective pieces to their faces, not their names.

He was looking to work on that.

"Cool, glad to meet you Argento-chan." She blushed. "Do you mind telling me a little bit about mister jackass over here? He seemed to know you…" he trailed off.

She didn't answer. Her eyes went wide, and her breathing was sporadically cutting itself short.

'_Shit! She's going into shock.'_

Forming a clone and having him watch over the strange man, he dropped the devil like a sack of potatoes and turned towards Asia. Approaching her slowly, Naruto made sure he was within range of her eyes the whole time. No sudden movements. There was no need to scare her any further.

"Hey, hey. Asia… it'll be ok. I promise I'm not going to hurt you, alright?" He slowly placed a hand on her shoulder. He felt her flinch, but she didn't turn away. That was positive. "If you don't want to tell me what happened, that's okay. We can talk later if you'd like but don't feel like you are required to. I won't force anything on you, I promise."

She didn't say anything. A small nod was her only response.

He smiled softly. "Good. Now then." The teen stood up straight and cracked his back. "I'm currently staying with Akeno-chan at the moment, were you aware?"

Asia's eyes focused back in slightly as she considered the question. The former nun shook her head slightly. She hadn't paid much attention when he barged in last time. On top of that, it felt like an eternity since she talked to her queen, so she had no clue.

"Fair enough. I guess that's not important, right now. What _is _important, is that it gives us a chance to group together with someone who may have an idea on what to do." He paused. "Also, we can freshen up and get ready for the day. I assume you'd appreciate a shower?"

He paused before pointing over his shoulder at the man tied up behind him.

"Also, Akeno-chan might be able assist us in figuring out what we should do with captain asshole back there."

Asia blinked at the existence of a second Naruto between the one talking to her. Where did he come from?

"Confused about that guy?"

The question was rhetorical, and she knew it. Though, she felt a spark of interest shoot through her body. So, she nodded.

"Hmmm…" he crossed his arms. "Well, to put it simply, it's one of my abilities. I can make solid clones of myself to a, so-called, 'ridiculous degree'. Though they aren't durable and have a few other downsides."

She accepted the explanation but was inwardly very confused. What kind of ability would let someone clone themselves like that? Was it a Sacred Gear?

"Okay, Argento-chan! Let's head out!" Naruto interrupted.

She watched, with a detached expression, as the bound man was dragged away. The original Naruto continued to stay by her side.

"Are you able to walk, Asia?"

His voice was quiet, calm and kind. It was loving in a way that she had forgotten people could be.

It was so… secure.

"Yes." She answered softly. Following the clone in front of her, she kept her head forward and her eyes glassy; ensuring she was right next to him the entire time. Her footsteps matched with the original as if she was afraid of being out of his line of sight.

Naruto watched from his position adjacent to her a frown firmly plastered on his face. It was clear that while this situation was certainly traumatic, the girl had suffered _far _worse from whatever it was that caused all her friends to become so withdrawn. Judging by the look in her eye she would be one of the hardest ones to fix.

But he promised Akeno. And if there was one thing he refused to do; it was going back on his word.

For, that was his Ninja Way.

* * *

Akeno woke up to the sound of a body hitting the floor. Sitting up startled she looked in confusion at the sight before her.

"Naruto-kun…? Asia-chan…?"

She blinked.

"Who's that?"

The ninja grinned sheepishly before explaining the situation to her, in a very abridged version. He left out the fact that she had a panic attack. A rather severe one, at that. He figured she didn't want that coming out quite yet.

Asia smiled at that. Internally grateful.

"I see. I'm so sorry you had to go through all that Asia-chan." Akeno frowned. The man on the ground sparking something akin to realization in her eyes. "He looks familiar somehow. What did you say his name was?"

Naruto cocked his head to the side. "Ah, Dordora? No… I think it started with Dio. Or maybe-?"

"Diodora Astaroth. That's what he told me."

Asia's quiet voice held conviction as she gave her recollection of the information to her senpai. The school's second 'idol' felt her eyes widen.

"Diodora!?"

Both blondes jumped back from the sudden outburst. She looked scared, and deeply worried.

"Asia-chan. Are you _certain _that's what he called himself?"

The bishop suddenly shrunk in on herself. Had she done something wrong? Her breathing started to accelerate just as she felt a familiar hand rest itself on her shoulder.

She flinched far less than expected as his quiet voice soothed her nerves.

Akeno watched the byplay with confusion evident. When had these two gotten so close?

"Ah-yes." The timid girl eventually answered. "He told me that was his name… I'm sure of it."

Naruto smiled down proudly at the girl who felt a rush of warmth at his attention. He turned back to his closest friend with a serious expression adorning his face.

"You heard it from Argento-chan. So, who exactly is this jackass, anyway? Some big-wig in the underworld I'm assuming?"

He had sensed the aura surrounding the sadistic man almost immediately upon entering the area. While it was easy to just say that it was due to his intentions, having spent so much time around Akeno he was able to identify a devil easily now. He was undoubtedly one of them.

She bit her lip. "Yeah… he is. He's the heir apparent to his family; an upper-class clan in the underworld. While not one with as much reach as the Gremory's, the name holds very real weight."

In other words, keeping such an integral person hostage wouldn't be the best option. Naruto frowned with a hand on his chin in thought.

"Well, I can see how this could be a serious problem." He relented. "That being said there's no way in hell I'm gonna just _release _this guy after he almost attacked Asia here. If I turned my back on a friend that easily I'd be one hell of a hypocritical asshole."

The bishop in question was visibly touched. This guy that she had been anything but kind to was willing to stick his neck out for her. More than that, he actually considered her a friend?

It felt… nice.

Akeno sized her friend up. A cursory glance of her fellow peerage member gave her some interesting clues. She watched as the girl cautiously took hold of Naruto's arm. What exactly happened to bring about this level of paranoia? While she was notably more cautious since Issei's death, conflict was never something that particularly scared her. At least to this degree. If anything, she tended to ignore it.

So, what gives?

On top of that…

Her eyes gazed into her male friends' expression. His eyes told a story that there was far more beyond the surface here. He was trying to hide it, more than likely for his fellow blondes' sake, but he couldn't completely.

"Did something else happen?" she started slowly. "If you want me to try and get someone of this level of fame arrested, there must be serious reasoning behind it."

While getting attacked was certainly worrying, for devils it was a way of life and not necessarily something that one of major wealth could be taken into custody for. Even if she felt it was deserved it wasn't easy to go against the status quo, as it were.

Naruto just gave her a look that told volumes. This man deserved his time, _and then some_. She nodded back showing she understood.

"Ano, Akeno-san…?"

It was the first time the healer had directly spoken to the thunder maiden in weeks and she felt scared to do so. The older girl smiled back softly.

"Yes, Asia-chan? What's wrong?"

The girl just clutched onto the arm of her savior slightly harder.

"Um… I was just wondering why you are naked…"

It was at this point that Naruto blinked before he realized he had been talking to his friend with nothing more than a sheet on. Feeling his blood rush south he turned away with a resolute expression.

"Goddammit Akeno. What did I tell you about going to bed naked!?"

He pointedly ignored the fact that he didn't even notice her state of undress as he left earlier this morning. Maybe he was getting used to her stripping habits.

That couldn't be good.

"Oh, Na-ru-to-kunnn?" she spoke softly as she draped over his back. He shivered as her breath caressed the nape of his skin. "You should know by now that you can't tell me what to do, right…?"

He gulped as he felt her generous assets push into his back. Never mind, he would never get used to this girl.

He smiled weakly. "Ah, yeah you're right, silly me."

Asia watched from the sidelines with a visible 'o' to her mouth. She was shocked the normally flirty queen would go _this _far with Naruto. She never even teased… _him _as much.

What did this mean?

"Do you not like me, Naruto-kun?" Akeno pouted cutely. "Am I not attractive enough for you?"

Predictably he began sputtering like crazy as he tried, and failed, to come up with a reasonable explanation to get himself out of this situation.

"Ah, no that's not uh the case at all, Akeno-chan. You know you're my best friend here, and you're very smart and you're very beautiful and and…" he turned away with a cough. "Nevermind, I'll shut up now. Sorry…"

Akeno, momentarily stunned by the confession, felt a wide smile stretch its way across her face.

He really was sweet.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun." She spoke softly, getting off him. "That was very nice of you."

Asia watched the back and forth with slightly widened eyes. This was _seriously _strange. She almost didn't feel the twinge in the back of her throat as she once more grasped at the boy's arm.

The half-Fallen-Angel did though and raised an eyebrow at it.

'_She looks to be developing some sort of serious attachment to Naruto. That is not ordinary for her. Though she doesn't even seem aware of it.'_

What could have happened to cause such a quick character change?

Their resident ninja yawned. "Well, I _really _don't want to go to school but I guess the both of you do, right? I'll go have a shower and get ready then."

Asia watched him step away from her with bated breath. She couldn't let him out of her sight.

She was… terrified.

"Uzumaki…san…?"

Her voice, while nearly inaudible, was picked up rather easily due to his increased hearing affinity. He stopped walking and looked over at her with a raised brow.

"What's up Argento-chan? Is something wrong?"

She didn't speak but instead slowly shuffled towards him and held onto his arm. He looked down at her in confusion as she turned away. Naruto made eye contact with Akeno who looked conflicted.

Though, she decided to leave it up to him.

Sighing at the predicament he lowered himself until he was eye level with his fellow blonde. He placed a hand on her head and slowly played her hair.

"It'll be ok, Asia. I promise you." he smiled. "I'm just going to go for a shower, will you be alright out here? Akeno-chan will make sure you're safe."

She looked up at him with glossy eyes as she fought with herself. Why was she so adamant about being next to him? She barely even knew him.

But she felt so very safe. Secure. After all that has happened to her recently, she wasn't ready to let that go.

Naruto could tell.

He smiled awkwardly. "Alright. You win. Will you be okay standing just outside the bathroom while I shower? I promise I'll be back out as soon as I can. You can even talk to me while I'm in there if you need to, okay?"

The gratefulness flew off her in waves.

She refused to let this feeling leave.

* * *

"Remind me why we're here again?"

Akeno sighed as she looked over at Naruto and his new-found 'attachment' as she had dubbed her. It was currently lunch time and the trio found themselves standing in front of the Student Council's room. She turned to him and deadpanned.

"Sitri-san was the reason I got you into this school. She's the King of her own Peerage, in a similar vein to Rias." She explained. "As I explained before, she intended to meet with you the other day, but you left with Azazel-san. That set things back a bit. She has a busy schedule, you see, so she can only designate certain times of the week to focus on other things."

Naruto flicked a piece of wax out of his ear as he yawned at the explanation given. Asia just held onto his other arm even tighter. The other two had tried to remove her but she remained surprisingly resolute in her decision.

"Alright, I get that." He relented. "Though you have no idea _why _she wanted to meet with me?"

"Yeah. I'm not going to tell you that."

He fell to the ground, accidentally pulling Asia with him as he began writing squiggles with his finger. The ex-nun tentatively patted his back to show her support through these tough times.

Akeno just smirked.

Messing with her kouhai was always such a treat.

"Ah. Himejima-san, Argento-san, Uzumaki-san. Welcome."

A formal voice, followed by the entrance of two well-fitted females, got the attention of the three in the hallway.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the new arrivals and got up from the floor.

"Sona Sitri, I guess?" he asked, motioning towards the girl wearing glasses. He beamed. "It's nice to meet ya! The names Naruto Uzumaki, dattebayo!"

She raised an eyebrow at the rather… unorthodox introduction. Akeno had told her he was quite exuberant but that didn't quite match up to reality, it seems.

"Quite. The pleasure, is all mine Uzumaki-san." She paused and motioned towards the black-haired girl next to her. "This is my queen, Tsubaki Shinra."

Naruto shook hands with the girls, a bright smile on his face. While he _really _didn't want to come to school, he was always up for making new friends.

Though they did seem a _tad _too attached to the rules of the school for his liking. Oh well, he could always help them loosen up!

"Well, down to business then." Sona spoke. "Uzumaki-san, if _you_ could join us in our club room for a debriefing, I would greatly appreciate it."

He caught onto the hidden meaning behind her words. Evidently so did Asia.

"Don't go, please…?"

Her puppy-dog eyes were too much for the weak-willed boy, even when she didn't intend for them to be as such. Sending a pleading look to Akeno his face fell at the smirk adorning it. He was on his own here.

"Ah, Sitri… san?" Naruto grunted, doing his best to be formal. "Could Argento-chan please join us for the meeting? I, uh… I don't think she wants to be alone right now…"

Sona raised an eyebrow at the timid girl currently clutching at his arm like a lifeline. Casting a glance at Akeno she saw the sultry expression lost, a serious one taking its place. If it caused her to stop teasing, then the situation must be dire.

"Alright Uzumaki-san, if that is what you wish-"

"Ah, I have one more request."

She took a deep breath to even herself out. She could just tell he would be one of _those _people.

"Yes…? What is it?"

He pointed behind him. "This one isn't negotiable. Akeno-chan is going to join us."

Everyone present was stunned by the demand.

Sona recovered quickly. "Forgive me Uzumaki-san, but why exactly? Argento-san I can give a pass to due to… probable circumstances. But I wished for this meeting to be private. There were questions I wanted to ask you one-on-one. Is there a reason Himejima-san must be involved?"

He pondered the question for a few moments. Eventually he answered, a soft smile on his face.

"Well… not to dance around the obvious but I'm not exactly from around here." He shrugged nonchalantly. "I landed here, injured, alone and with no knowledge of the area. Akeno-chan took it upon herself to heal me, feed me, give me a place to stay and a chance at her friendship. She's the most important person in this world to me so don't think for a second I won't involve her in something like this." He paused, his bright smile on full display. "Also, I was just gonna tell her what happens here anyway soooo may as well get it out of the way now!"

The area was silent as the four girls stared at the blonde male in complete shock. The weight of his words not lost on any of them.

'_Naruto Uzumaki… what an intriguing person. I can see why Himejima-san is so taken with him.'_ Sona, and to a similar extent, Tsubaki thought.

'_Uzumaki-kun is so kind to his friends. Akeno-san is so lucky…' _Asia thought as her head drooped slightly. Her self-worth so low that jealousy took its place.

And Akeno…

Was blushing. Badly.

'_Wha-what was that…? How can he say things like that with a straight face…?'_

Her heart was thumping; fast, and she couldn't stop it. Was this feeling-?

No.

She shook her head. Stop it. Don't think about it, don't even consider it. It's not right. It's just.

Not.

Right.

Or was it-?

"Well Himejima-san, I guess that settles that. If he trusts you as much as he claims I guess you'd better sit in with us." Sona smiled at her.

Akeno coughed to regain some sense of dignity. Sona just smirked internally at her friends' behavior. Teasing the one who usually did the teasing, was always fun. Over the past couple weeks, they had begun talking far more than before. It was a nice relationship born from the loss of mental stability over the rest of Akeno's fellow peerage members.

Although looking over at Asia and towards Naruto, Sona saw a possible fix for the future.

"Ah, yes. Of course."

The thunder maiden smiled.

"Thank you for having me, Sitri-san, Naruto-kun."

* * *

The meeting wasn't long. After all, their lunchtimes were anything but. The topics ranged from who he was personally, what his plans were and how he was enjoying school thus far.

He shut that down as soon as possible.

The entire time, Akeno kept stealing glances at him when she thought he didn't notice, and Asia stuck to him like glue. It was strange.

It only got more complicated after the school day finished.

"Hey! Neko-chan, over here!"

Koneko looked up with a startled expression on her face as she spotted her new friend alongside Akeno and-

"Asia-san…?"

The blonde girl looked at the Nekomata and nodded slowly at the admission. She was unaware what Naruto's plans were for the day but didn't intend on leaving him anytime soon. Akeno sighed as she knew what was coming.

"So, my adorable little kouhai!" Naruto smiled and grabbed her by the shoulder. Hard. "I see that you were leaving the courtyard. You wouldn't have been thinking about leaving early, now were you…?"

Truth be told, that was _exactly _what she was thinking. She was still exhausted from yesterday's training and had no intention of continuing it today. She needed a break dammit!

"Ah, well I wasn't planning to really, but I-!"

"Oh? Well good!" The ninja's grip was like stone. "I guess it's time to get our training underway, then!"

"NO PLEASE, SENPAI, HAVE MERCY-!"

They were gone.

Akeno deadpanned.

"I was left behind. Again."

Even Asia got to go!... Though, in retrospect, she probably had no idea what was happening and was forced along.

A reluctant smile spread across her face as she muttered.

"Ara, ara; what a troublesome roommate I picked for myself."

* * *

**A/N: **Damn another update in less than a month? Is this real life:o. All jokes aside, chapters are a lot easier to pump out when I lower their length to around this size. Makes me less stressed about throwing an entire arc in one chapter XD. I hope you enjoyed this one! Next chapter is going to focus on a couple things that some people have brought up regarding Asia's healing. As some have noted, my knowledge isn't perfect on the series. I've watched the anime but that's all. I know things in the light novels but never read them. Mainly because while I love aspects about the series, there are a lot of things that I don't like. (Akeno is waifu asf though, which is kinda the main reason I first wrote this lol). But in short answer, no, Asia would not have been able to bring Issei back after becoming a chew toy. Everyone acted like he died in the show so why would they do that if it was so easy to fix? I just don't believe it would. I intended that to be brought up next chapter but figured I'd mention it here x). Anyway! Have a great day guys, hope the isolation isn't getting to any of you!


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